The Concept of Tolerance and its Relevance in Ukraine

Abstract

Tolerance is one of the key conditions in the harmonious development of a society. On one hand tolerance can be described as an effective mechanism of understanding between different social communities, and on the other hand, it is one of the most important paradigms in modern scientific and philosophical discourses. Its worldwide implementation became possible only in the conditions and circumstances of recent history. After all, only in the late twentieth century the growing importance of tolerance led to the adoption of the “Declaration of Principles on Tolerance” at the UNESCO conference, the introduction of the International Day for Tolerance, and encouraged a gradual and persistent implementation of the basic principles of tolerance in a number of Western countries. Due to the growth of relevance a number of different platforms discussing issues related to tolerance/intolerance have been created, and concrete steps have been taken in order to build a space of tolerance in the particular areas of public life in developed countries. In addition, the intellectual circles of European countries are aware of the fact that democracy as a fundamental value of Western civilization can not be fully realized without taking into account the conceptual structure of the idea of tolerance. Modern theories of democracy, that emphasize the protection of minority rights in the view of the interests of the majority, are highlighting the connection between democracy and the conceptualization of tolerance.