Argues that South Africans, like everyone else, need democracy for a more equal society
What are democracies meant to do? And how does one know when one is a democratic state? These incisive questions and more by leading political scientist, Steven Friedman, underlie this robust enquiry into what democracy means for South Africa post 1994. Democracy is often viewed through a lens reflecting Western understanding. New democracies are compared to idealized notions by which the system is said to operate in the global North. The democracies of Western Europe and North America are understood to be the finished product and all others are assessed by how far they have progressed towards approximating this model.
Power in Action persuasively argues against this stereotype. Friedman asserts that democracies can only work when every adult has an equal say in the public decisions that affect them.Democracy is achieved not by adopting idealized models derived from other societies?rather, it is the product of collective action by citizens who claim the right to be heard not only through public protest action, but also through the conscious exercise of influence on public and private power holders.
Viewing democracy in this way challenges us to develop a deeper understanding of democracy's challenges and in so doing to ensure that more citizens can claim a say over more decisions in society.
Autorentext
Steven Friedman
Inhalt
Introduction
Chapter 1 The Journey Lasts Forever: Beyond 'Democratic Consolidation'
Chapter 2 Deeper and Broader: What Makes Democracies More or Less Democratic?
Chapter 3 Democracy in Deed: The Centrality of Collective Action
Chapter 4 Colonisation of a Sympathetic Type? The Culture of Democracy
Chapter 5 Another Lens: Collective Action and Democracy in Africa
Chapter 6 Every Day is a Special Day: Collective Action as Democratic Routine
Chapter 7 Power is Theirs? Why Collective Action Is Usually the Preserve of the Few
Chapter 8 Collective Action as Democratic Citizenship: The Treatment Action Campaign
Chapter 9 Towards Popular Sovereignty: Building a Deeper and Stronger Democracy
Notes
References
Index