Americans Aren’t Practicing Democracy Anymore – Key Vocabulary
Concept Overview
Democracy is described as an acquired habit, not an innate human instinct.
Requires repetitive practice in rule-making, majority acceptance, and voluntary submission to procedures.
U.S. once unique for its “mania for democracy”: citizens repeatedly practiced democratic processes inside innumerable voluntary associations.
Current predicament framed as a loss of democratic habit, producing distrust in institutions and opening space for anti-norm candidates.
Historical Context: America’s Democratic Habit (18th–19th c.)
Early foreign observers (e.g., Alexis de Tocqueville, James Bryce) marveled at Americans’ obsession with forming associations.
Children’s games already contained self-written rules and self-policing.
Common organizational architecture:
Written constitutions/charters.
Elected officers & rotating terms.
Multi-level representation (local ⇒ state ⇒ national).
Internal checks—executive, legislative, judicial analogues.
Examples across sectors:
Fraternal orders (Knights of Pythias compiled 2{,}827 precedents for internal courts).
Businesses with shareholder-elected boards.
Labor unions with chartered locals.
Churches, mutual insurers, volunteer fire companies.
Democracy became a “shared civic religion”: procedure conferred legitimacy regardless of ideology.
Ku Klux Klan & NAACP used similar democratic forms, illustrating value-neutrality of the ritual.
Excluded groups weaponized associations for inclusion:
Debtors (1790s) self-governed in jail via a mini-constitution.
Free & formerly enslaved Blacks had higher association formation rates than white neighbors.
Women leveraged charitable societies to enter public debate and win suffrage.
Arthur Schlesinger Sr. (1944): voluntary associations are the “greatest school of self-government.”
Popular culture evidence:
Henry Robert’s Pocket Manual (1876) sold 500{,}000+ copies within 40 years—parallels today’s smartphone as ever-present guide.
University of Georgia’s Walter B. Hill (1892) quipped an entire town held offices—“a nation of presidents.”
Decline in Civic Participation (Late 20th c. → Present)
Robert Putnam, Bowling Alone (2000) quantified steep membership drop.
Study 1994\text{–}2004 : membership down 21\%.
Survey (2010 Census): only 11\% served as officer/committee member in previous year.
Distinction between active vs passive membership:
Slight rise in dues/online sign-ups masks plummeting meeting attendance.
Persisting activities (volunteering, religious attendance, social media) yield interpersonal social capital but not procedural training.
Statistical Evidence & Surveys
Millennial attitudes (2011): \approx25\% believed democracy a “bad/very bad” governance form & elections “unimportant.”
Gallup pre-2016: confidence in major institutions (press, schools, justice system, Congress, presidency, Supreme Court) below historic averages.
PRRI/The Atlantic poll (Apr 2016) among GOP-leaning voters:
Overall: Trump 37\%, Cruz 31\%.
Among civically disengaged (rare/never join local activities): Trump 50\%, Cruz 24\%.
Disengaged voters formed majority of Trump’s primary support.
Civic knowledge vs. action study:
Every extra unit of civic knowledge in HS seniors ⇒ 2\% higher voting probability 8 yrs later.
Active extracurricular participation ⇒ 141\% higher probability (massive multiplier).
Causes of Decline
Technological & social shifts:
Automobile & television reduced neighborhood-centric gatherings.
Two-income households shrank leisure hours.
“Cult of efficiency” (Theda Skocpol):
Organizations professionalized; members pay dues but don’t deliberate.
Examples: AARP (95\% uninvolved), AAA now mere service card.
Erosion in labor-union protections & rise of mega-corporations → diminished member power; shareholders discover limited control over boards.
Consequences of Decline
Fewer citizens learn to “lose gracefully” or prioritize process over outcome.
Contempt for norms increases; political actors feel following rules is unilateral disarmament.
Legislature dysfunction, institutional distrust, and outsider presidential success (Trump) are symptoms of civic decay.
The Trump Phenomenon
Campaign narrative: system “rigged”, insiders wrote rules.
Governing style: flaunts protocol—constant norm violation makes precedent for future breaches.
Support concentrated among those least practiced in democratic rituals, reinforcing article’s thesis.
Necessity for Reviving Democratic Practice
Merely changing elected officials insufficient; must re-habitualize democracy.
Acceptance that golden-age clubs unlikely to return; new forms needed.
Education & Youth Solutions
Schools as primary incubators:
Traditional civics classes insufficient; need hands-on self-governance.
Provide time, space, and resources for students to write charters, elect officers, resolve disputes.
Advisors should refrain from over-guiding ⇒ space for mistakes & corrections.
Equity gaps:
As minority percentage rises, likelihood of student council having a charter falls.
Poorer public schools with councils more prone to administrative override.
Reform imperative: universal access to authentic student self-rule.
Extracurriculars matter more than content: sports, robotics, etc. become democratic labs if students control procedures.
Automatic voter registration at age 18 recommended to cement habit; voting itself reinforces future voting (habit-formation research).
Structural & Institutional Reforms Beyond Schools
Re-democratize adult organizations:
Accept slower, messier processes in exchange for empowerment.
Replace some expert bureaucrats with elected amateurs where feasible.
Recognize efficiency trade-off: democracy valuable for harmonizing discordant interests not maximizing productivity.
Broader Implications & Philosophical Notes
Constitution relies on democratic culture; legal framework alone insufficient.
Norm decay is path-dependent: each broken rule lowers cost for next violation.
A nation of passive observers breeds resentment ⇒ populist backlash.
Restoring procedural loyalty could dampen polarization by shifting focus from zero-sum outcomes to shared rule-based play.
Key Terms & Figures
Democratic habit: ingrained practice of rule-making, deliberation, majority acceptance.
Social capital (Putnam): networks, norms of reciprocity; criticized here for overlooking procedural learning.
Cult of efficiency: preference for expert-led streamlined governance at cost of participatory legitimacy.
Major scholars cited: Alexis de Tocqueville, James Bryce, Arthur Schlesinger Sr., Robert Putnam, Theda Skocpol, Carl Becker.
Guiding text: Henry Robert’s Rules of Order—symbol of procedural veneration.
Connections to Previous Lectures / Real-World Relevance
Complements earlier discussions on institutional trust and populism: shows micro-level civic decline as macro-level causal variable.
Ties to organizational theory: decentralized vs centralized decision-making; democratic governance as intrinsic motivation enhancer.
Implications for public-policy internships, service-learning programs: maximize student autonomy, not mere volunteering.
Ethical consideration: ensuring marginalized communities have equal procedural training to avoid perpetuating power imbalances.