Change Elections to Change America: Democracy Matters

Change Elections to Change America: Democracy Matters PDF Author: Jay R. Mandle
Publisher: Easton Studio Press, LLC
ISBN: 1935212028
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 170

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Book Description
A social movement is needed to reduce the excessive power of wealth to influence politics. Democracy Matters organizes students in the hope of building such a social movement. It seeks to achieve the enhanced political equality that could be secured with the public funding of election campaigns. Historically, young people have provided a moral compass for their elders, highlighting the need for social change. DM seeks to accomplish today what the civil rights, women’s, and more recently the LGBTQ movements have achieved in creating a more just and inclusive society. Change Elections to Change America is a report on the ongoing experiences of Democracy Matters. It was founded in 2001 when the professional basketball player Adonal Foyle provided initial funding. It has grown and brought the issue of the distorting impact of private wealth to the attention of literally thousands of students on campuses all over the United States. But at the same time it has not yet succeeded in bringing to life the kind of a social movement needed for such a radical change. Change Elections to Change America describes the activities of Democracy Matters on campuses. It concludes with a positive assessment of the prospects for building a social movement in the digital age. Social media are invaluable tools that facilitate organizing. But they are no substitute for face to face dialogue and persuasion. Success will require a scaling up of organizing efforts. This book is written with the hope that the Democracy Matters experience will inspire others to do the political work that democratizing politics in the United States requires.

Change Elections to Change America: Democracy Matters

Change Elections to Change America: Democracy Matters PDF Author: Jay Mandle
Publisher: Easton Studio Press, LLC
ISBN: 193521201X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 170

Get Book Here

Book Description
A social movement is needed to reduce the excessive power of wealth to influence politics. Democracy Matters organizes students in the hope of building such a social movement. It seeks to achieve the enhanced political equality that could be secured with the public funding of election campaigns. Historically, young people have provided a moral compass for their elders, highlighting the need for social change. DM seeks to accomplish today what the civil rights, women’s, and more recently the LGBTQ movements have achieved in creating a more just and inclusive society. Change Elections to Change America is a report on the ongoing experiences of Democracy Matters. It was founded in 2001 when the professional basketball player Adonal Foyle provided initial funding. It has grown and brought the issue of the distorting impact of private wealth to the attention of literally thousands of students on campuses all over the United States. But at the same time it has not yet succeeded in bringing to life the kind of a social movement needed for such a radical change. Change Elections to Change America describes the activities of Democracy Matters on campuses. It concludes with a positive assessment of the prospects for building a social movement in the digital age. Social media are invaluable tools that facilitate organizing. But they are no substitute for face to face dialogue and persuasion. Success will require a scaling up of organizing efforts. This book is written with the hope that the Democracy Matters experience will inspire others to do the political work that democratizing politics in the United States requires.

Democracy in America?

Democracy in America? PDF Author: Benjamin I. Page
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022650901X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 378

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Book Description
America faces daunting problems—stagnant wages, high health care costs, neglected schools, deteriorating public services. Yet the government consistently ignores the needs of its citizens, paying attention instead to donors and organized interests. Real issues are held hostage to demagoguery, partisanship beats practicality, and trust in government withers along with the social safety net. How did we get here? Through decades of dysfunctional government. In Democracy in America? veteran political observers Benjamin I. Page and Martin Gilens marshal an unprecedented array of evidence to show that while other countries have responded to a rapidly changing economy by helping people who’ve been left behind, the United States has failed to do so. Instead, we have actually exacerbated inequality, enriching corporations and the wealthy while leaving ordinary citizens to fend for themselves. What’s the solution? More democracy. More opportunity for citizens to shape what their government does. To repair our democracy, Page and Gilens argue, we must change the way we choose candidates and conduct our elections, reform our governing institutions, and curb the power of money in politics. By doing so, we can reduce polarization and gridlock, address pressing challenges, and enact policies that truly reflect the interests of average Americans. This book presents a damning indictment. But the situation is far from hopeless. With increased democratic participation as their guide, Page and Gilens lay out a set of proposals that would boost citizen participation, curb the power of money, and democratize the House and Senate. The only certainty is that inaction is not an option. Now is the time to act to restore and extend American democracy.

Democracy Unchained

Democracy Unchained PDF Author: David Orr
Publisher: The New Press
ISBN: 1620975149
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 481

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Book Description
A stellar group of America's leading political thinkers explore how to reboot our democracy The presidential election of 2016 highlighted some long-standing flaws in American democracy and added a few new ones. Across the political spectrum, most Americans do not believe that democracy is delivering on its promises of fairness, justice, shared prosperity, or security in a changing world. The nation cannot even begin to address climate change and economic justice if it remains paralyzed by political gridlock. Democracy Unchained is about making American democracy work to solve problems that have long impaired our system of governance. The book is the collective work of thirty of the most perceptive writers, practitioners, scientists, educators, and journalists writing today, who are committed to moving the political conversation from the present anger and angst to the positive and constructive change necessary to achieve the full promise of a durable democracy that works for everyone and protects our common future. Including essays by Yasha Mounk on populism, Chisun Lee on money and politics, Ras Baraka on building democracy from the ground up, and Bill McKibben on climate, Democracy Unchained is the articulation of faith in democracy and will be required reading for all who are working to make democracy a reality. Table of Contents Foreword Introduction David W. Orr Part I. The Crisis of Democracy Populism and Democracy Yascha Mounk Reconstructing Our Constitutional Democracy K. Sabeel Rahman Restoring Healthy Party Competition Jacob S. Hacker and Paul Pierson When Democracy Becomes Something Else: The Problem of Elections and What to Do About It Andrew Gumbel The Best Answer to Money in Politics After Citizens United: Public Campaign Financing in the Empire State and Beyond Chisun Lee Remaking the Presidency After Trump Jeremi Suri The Problem of Presidentialism Stephen Skowronek Part II. Foundations of Democracy Renewing the American Democratic Faith Steven C. Rockefeller American Land, American Democracy Eric Freyfogle Race and Democracy: The Kennedys, Obama, Trump, and Us Michael Eric Dyson Liberty and Justice for All: Latina Activist Efforts to Strengthen Democracy in 2018 Maria Hinojosa What Black Women Teach Us About Democracy Andra Gillespie and Nadia E. Brown Engines of Democracy: Racial Justice and Cultural Power Rashad Robinson Civic and Environmental Education: Protecting the Planet and Our Democracy Judy Braus The Supreme Court's Legitimacy Crisis and Constitutional Democracy’s Future Dawn Johnsen Part III. Policy Challenges Can Democracy Survive the Internet? David Hickton The New New Deal: How to Reregulate Capitalism Robert Kuttner First Understand Why They're Winning: How to Save Democracy from the Anti-Immigrant Far Right Sasha Polakow-Suransky No Time Left: How the System Is Failing to Address Our Ultimate Crisis Bill McKibben Powering Democracy Through Clean Energy Denise G. Fairchild The Long Crisis: American Foreign Policy Before and After Trump Jessica Tuchman Mathews Part IV. Who Acts, and How? The Case for Strong Government William S. Becker The States Nick Rathod Democracy in a Struggling Swing State Amy Hanauer Can Independent Voters Save American Democracy? Why 42 Percent of American Voters Are Independent and How They Can Transform Our Political System Jaqueline Salit and Thom Reilly Philanthropy and Democracy Stephen B. Heintz Keeping the Republic Dan Moulthrop The Future of Democracy Mayor Ras Baraka Building a University Where All People Matter Michael M. Crow, William B. Dabars, and Derrick M. Anderson Biophilia and Direct Democracy Timothy Beatley Purpose-Driven Capitalism Mindy Lubber Restoring Democracy: Nature's Trust, Human Survival, and Constitutional Fiduciary Governance 397 Mary Christina Wood Conclusion Ganesh Sitaraman

Challenging Authority

Challenging Authority PDF Author: Frances Fax Piven
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 0742563405
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 205

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Book Description
Argues that ordinary people exercise extraordinary political courage and power in American politics when, frustrated by politics as usual, they rise up in anger and hope, and defy the authorities and the status quo rules that ordinarily govern their daily lives. By doing so, they disrupt the workings of important institutions and become a force in American politics. Drawing on critical episodes in U.S. history, Piven shows that it is in fact precisely at those seismic moments when people act outside of political norms that they become empowered to their full democratic potential.

Changing How America Votes

Changing How America Votes PDF Author: Todd Donovan
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
ISBN: 9781442276062
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
Changing How America Votes is an edited volume comprised of 15 short substantive chapters on various specific reform topics that examine how electoral democracy in the United States might be improved. Editor Todd Donovan has organized the readings around three themes: changing who votes, changing how we vote, and the roles of parties and money.

Electoral Change and Stability in American Political History

Electoral Change and Stability in American Political History PDF Author: Jerome M. Clubb
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description


Vote for US

Vote for US PDF Author: Joshua A. Douglas
Publisher:
ISBN: 1633885100
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 352

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Book Description
"An expert on US election law presents an encouraging assessment of current efforts to make our voting system more accessible, reliable, and effective"--

Democracy Matters

Democracy Matters PDF Author: Cornel West
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0143035835
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
“Uncompromising and unconventional . . . Cornel West is an eloquent prophet with attitude.” — Newsweek“ "A timely analysis about the current state of democratic systems in America." — The Boston Globe In Democracy Matters, Cornel West argues that if America is to become a better steward of democratization around the world, we must first wake up to the long history of corruption that has plagued our own democracy: racism, free market fundamentalism, aggressive militarism, and escalating authoritarianism. This impassioned and empowering call for the revitalization of America's democracy, by one of our most distinctive and compelling social critics, will reshape the raging national debate about America's role in today's troubled world.

America's Uneven Democracy

America's Uneven Democracy PDF Author: Zoltan Hajnal
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780511657801
Category : Electronic books
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
Although there is a widespread belief that uneven voter turnout leads to biased outcomes in American democracy, existing empirical tests have found few effects. By offering a systematic account of how and where turnout matters in local politics, this book challenges much of what we know about turnout in America today. It demonstrates that low and uneven turnout, a factor at play in most American cities, leads to sub-optimal outcomes for racial and ethnic minorities. Low turnout results in losses in mayoral elections, less equitable racial and ethnic representation on city councils, and skewed spending policies. The importance of turnout confirms long held suspicions about the under-representation of minorities and raises normative concerns about local democracy. Fortunately, this book offers a solution. Analysis of local participation indicates that a small change to local election timing - a reform that is cost effective and relatively easy to enact - could dramatically expand local voter turnout.

The Changing American Voter

The Changing American Voter PDF Author: Norman H. Nie
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 460

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Book Description
The authors of this prizewinning and best selling book on electoral behavior have brought their study up-to-date with a trenchant analysis of the 1976 presidential election. Once more by carefully analyzing national voting patterns, they give substantive meaning to statistics and figures. Professors Nie, Verba, and Petrocik show how the role of issues in 1976 voting seemed to be influenced by the political context of the campaign. In this respect the 1976 elections represented a reprise of earlier contests such as 1960. In other ways, such as the erosion of partisanship, 1976 resembled more recent elections. The authors use the 1976 election to test out their earlier analysis of the electorate. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.