In-depth study of the origins and the trajectories of the law governing social policies in the Global South: Brazil, China, India, and South Africa. Adds a new dimension to the existing accounts on welfare state building which, so far, are dominated by European narratives and by scholars with a background in sociology, political science, and development studies. Will be of interest to scholars and students as well as political actors in the fields of comparative and international social security law, human rights law, comparative constitutional law, constitutional history, law and development studies, comparative social policies, global social policies, social work, and welfare state theory.

In-depth study of the origins and the trajectories of the law governing social policies in the Global South: Brazil, China, India, and South Africa. Adds a new dimension to the existing accounts on welfare state building which, so far, are dominated by European narratives and by scholars with a background in sociology, political science, and development studies. Will be of interest to scholars and students as well as political actors in the fields of comparative and international social security law, human rights law, comparative constitutional law, constitutional history, law and development studies, comparative social policies, global social policies, social work, and welfare state theory.

This volume presents the reports and discussions held at the conference of the "Association of German Constitutional Teachers" in Erlangen from October, 1st to October, 4th, 2008.

Why did "equality" become prominent in European societies based on hierarchy during the Enlightenment? What does "equality" imply for societies, politics, or legal systems? The contributors to this volume draw on various historical case studies, from visionary practices in revolutionary France and the collection of data on the poor in 19th-century Germany, to claims raised under the minority regime of the League of Nations and the anti-discrimination politics of the UN and India. The dynamics of universalizing equality are contrasted with a concept asserting that equality must be limited to and by order. The contributions thus explore concepts of equality from the perspectives of history and law and show that practices of comparing were essential when it came to imagining others as equal, fighting discrimination, or scandalizing social inequalities.