Race, Representation, and the Legitimacy of International Organizations

• In Event: Race and International Relations

Abstract

The backlash against the liberal international order and the global movement for racial justice are two of the most important developments in world politics today. Though typically discussed as discrete and unrelated events, they intersect in meaningful ways. This paper argues that race plays an important, yet understudied, role in shaping citizens’ perceptions of the institutions that undergird the liberal order. Drawing on research about descriptive representation within domestic institutions, we argue that international organizations (IOs) are more likely to be viewed as legitimate actors in world politics when they are led by co-racials. To test this argument, we fielded survey experiments in two racially-diverse countries, South Africa and the United States. Our evidence shows that Black citizens view IOs as more legitimate when informed that the organization’s leader is Black. Co-racial leaders enhance IO legitimacy by influencing citizens’ perceptions of procedural fairness and their beliefs about whether an IO benefits their country. IO leaders’ race impacted attitudes more strongly and consistently than did leaders’ region-of-origin, and the effects are stronger for Black citizens than for Whites. Our results suggest that race and representation have an under-appreciated impact on the liberal international order.

Authors

• Daniel McDowell, Syracuse University

• David A. Steinberg, Johns Hopkins University