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“What Makes a Good Democracy?”
Presented by Karen Lynn
Socrates asked, “How should we live?” This idea is introduced by Astra Taylor near the beginning of her film, What is Democracy? www.nfb.ca/film/what-is-democracy-2018. It’s a good primer for a discussion of democracy.
The Center for High Impact Philanthropy presents a challenge in www.impact.upenn.edu/framework-for-healthy-democracy/ . It suggests that, “The people are the principal actors in a democracy. Citizens are empowered when their rights are protected, they are informed, and fellow citizens and policymakers proactively engage them in the democratic process.”
Fair Processes
As the mechanics of democracy, fair processes respect the principle of “one person, one vote” and hold policy-making institutions accountable through checks and balances.
Responsive Policy
As an output of democracy, responsive policy weighs all citizens’ interests and values equally, provides for the common good, and establishes institutions that empower individuals to protect their rights.
Information & Communication
These elements mediate the relationship between citizens, processes, and policy. Information and communication that are representative, accurate, and trusted ensure fair processes and enable citizens to hold policymakers accountable.
Social Cohesion
A shared sense of purpose and identity is implicit in the enduring phrase “we the people.” A democratic society’s members recognize each other’s right to a voice in the political process and are willing to collaborate for common ends.
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All of this high-minded talk points inevitably towards a system of social equality. Yet Greece enslaved many people, and women couldn’t vote. The United States was founded upon the enslavement of Blacks, and still, women couldn’t vote until recently. And pushing Indigenous people of their land, committing genocide and enslaving them (as we did) seems to be a weak foundation for a democracy.
The various forms of democracy are outlined by Robert Longly in ThoughtCo. at What Is Democracy? Definition and Examples (thoughtco.com). “In practice, democracy takes many different forms. Along with the two most common types of democracies—direct and representative—variants such as participatory, liberal, parliamentary, pluralist, constitutional, and socialist democracies can be found in use today.”
Questions
1. Are we finally on our way to creating real democracy? In Canada, the 20th Century brought an end to the exclusion of women from the vote, and residential schools. What do we still need to do to create a more fulsome democracy?
2. When I was a child, I never saw people begging in the streets of Toronto. Any middle-class family could buy a house. Now, income inequality is rapidly on the rise.
3. Can you have a real democracy when wealth is increasingly becoming concentrated in the hands of a relatively few wealthy capitalists?
4. What would a truly great democracy look like?
5. According to Statista www.statista.com/statistics/679796/democracy-index-most-democratic-countries , Norway is the most democratic country.
6. And Afghanistan is the least democratic country.