A DREAM DEFERRED
America's Discontent and the Search for a New Democratic Ideal
240 Pages
Beacon Press
Published 1992
SYNOPSIS
While new governments around the world strive for democracy, the United States is becoming increasingly authoritarian and undemocratic. Sociologist Philip Slater shows how Congress-bashing and low voter turnout are symptoms of a larger decline in our faith in the sharing of power and information. In documenting the costs of American authoritarianism, Slater convincingly demonstrates that democratic processes, however messy and confusing, ultimately yield the most intelligent and flexible responses to a complex world.
REVIEWS
“Persuasive, comprehensive, and precious at this historical moment.”
“In this perceptive and sharply argued analysis, Slater expands on his earlier ideas and places them within the context of what he sees as a global shift from an authoritarian to a democratic 'mega-culture'.”
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EXCERPTS
“Everyone talks about democracy, but few people have any idea of why it exists, why it is happening now, or where it will lead. Most people see it as a political phenomenon-which is like seeing TV as merely an electronic phenomenon.''
"Our corporations, professions, and educational institutions have yet to feel more than the palest breath of democratic influence."
"The irony is that the regimentation we complain about so much comes not from too much connectedness but from too little — not from the active 'we' of community but from the passive, withdrawn 'I' of individualism. It is the inability to cooperate, to negotiate actively about the things that concern us, that leaves room for — and makes necessary — the vast impersonal systems against which we rail, and upon which the individualist heaps so much impotent scorn."