Reconstructing Democracy: How Citizens are Building from the Ground Up
Published in 2020 by Madeleine Taylor with Charles Taylor, Patrizia Nanz
“An urgent manifesto for the reconstruction of democratic belonging in our troubled times.”—Davide Panagia
Drawing on examples of successful local processes in communities large and small, from a shrinking village in rural Austria to a neglected section of San Diego, Reconstructing Democracy makes a case for engaging residents from the ground up. At a time when many feel that governments are incapable of understanding their needs or addressing their problems, the book highlights innovative grassroots projects and shows how local activists can build alliances and discover their own power to solve problems.
Available for purchase at: Harvard University Press , Barnes and Noble, Amazon and Bookshop.org
From reviews of the book:
“This is an urgent manifesto for the reconstruction of democratic belonging in our troubled times. In their theorizing of democracy as a resonant dynamic of local engagements, civic practices, and forms of collective agency, Charles Taylor, Patrizia Nanz, and Madeleine Beaubien Taylor offer robust philosophical and empirical solutions to the deep need for reestablishing a sense of trust in citizen participation and solidarity.”―Davide Panagia, author of The Political Life of Sensation
“Reconstructing Democracy at first glance seems modest in its scope and aim, but it is actually quite ambitious. Taylor, Nanz, and Taylor find compelling examples of how engagement by citizens with other citizens at the most basic level of discussion and consultation can reshape communities, and in reshaping communities, reform the public sphere. The various citizen councils, grassroots organizers, and NGOs they highlight are those that don’t simply listen to citizens but encourage their active participation. The effect is to open up a fresh range of ideas for enabling ordinary citizens to shape the priorities of the places where they live.”―Thomas Dumm, author of Home in America
“This little book serves as a reminder of what’s missing from public life.”―Scott McLemee, Inside Higher Ed
