Reflecting on Durkheim and His Studies on Law through Cancellation of British Citizenship

Through an analysis of cancellation of citizenship laws in the United Kingdom, this chapter evaluates Durkheim’s writings on law and its links to moral evolution. It argues that Durkheim’s studies on law are complex and offer rich insights for contemporary sociolegal research. His methodological approaches are also ones that map onto modern-day sociolegal (“law and society” or “law in context”) research. However, Durkheim is overoptimistic in his view that, with time, a modern morality has emerged which venerates the sanctity of the Individual. In nationality deprivation cases, analysis reveals the breakdown of social solidarity and the failure to protect people from statelessness. It appears that organic solidarity of the kind that supports human rights is not always a matter of seamless moral and legal progression, contrary to Durkheim’s views.