A Festival For Democracy Could Make Democracy Cool

There are two crucial features required for any institution or government to become or remain democratic. The first element is constitutional, namely the governing structure must adequately provide for opportunities for citizens and members to have a say in the institution's decision-making, and must provide reasonable opportunities for citizens or members to exercise their rights within the institution. The second element is social, also known as cultural. In other words, for an institution to become or remain democratic, there must a legal structure that provides opportunities for citizens to engage in democratic activities, and there must be social or cultural factors that encourage such democratic engagement. When either element is missing the relevant institution cannot be democratic. Thus, one of the challenges faced among those seeking to advance democracy in the world is to make democracy an essential aspect of normative culture. It is not enough to advocate for laws that provide for the right to democratic activism and engagement if the population is no so driven. If one reads into the history of democratic communities, one repeatedly comes across the notion of the public square. Although it is discussed figuratively today, along with the notion of the "marketplace of ideas", there was a time when the market was a place for people of varying social classes and viewpoints to interact and exchange ideas. When one goes to the mall today, one simply does not have the opportunity to replicate the experience. When one goes to city-wide festivals like Artscape in Baltimore or the Taste of Chicago in Chicago, one rarely finds activist and volunteer organizations alongside the sale of hot dogs and showcasing of paintings and pottery. In fact, if one examines the activity calendars of most of the "city papers" in the country, one does not normally or necessarily see activist or volunteer opportunities advertised alongside the latest plays, concerts and arts festivals. [The Philadelphia city paper (at least its online edition) seems to be a notable exception from what I can tell.] This is a shame, and should be corrected. In my bold opinion, there is something curious and ironic that in a country where "robust debate in the public square" is an essential aspect of its self-image, most public squares are devoid of robust public debate. A logical mechanism for correcting this problem would be to bring the pubic debate to the already existing public forum. When I envisioned this piece, I envisioned that I would advocate for a festival that featured booths of numerous activist and communal organizations. The image in my head was for attendees to walk through booths of organizations throughout the political and social spectrum. It would also be fairly interesting for representatives of divergent political organizations to be thrust in a room together to speak to the same potential members. Now, however, as I think about festivals such as Artscape, Taste of Chicago, and other city-wide festivals featuring great art, great music, and numerous people, it strikes me that the more logical approach would be for organizers of these festivals to encourage and allow community associations, non-profit associations, and non-profit service organizations to be permitted space in festivities to advance their causes and showcase their services. I further believe that this is of such communal importance that these organizations should be permitted to participate in these festivals without the need to derive appearance fees analogous to those entities looking to turn a profit. Think about how this would enhance the community festivals that surround the fourth of July--a holiday clearly intended to advance our nation's democratic cause. Imagine how the national discussion would be enhanced so well by the incorporation of our national dialogues into our social experiences. To me, this is the logical way to make our democratic visions come alive. The notion of making civic engagement more connected to our cultural festivities is not unique to this author. In September 2010, a major national arts project aiming to make civic engagement and the Austrailian constitution "cool". One connected effort is a "ride for democracy" where 70 motorcycle riders will ride accross the nation urging the advancement of civic education. The articles I have not read about this have not specified how this advancement will work, but clearly the objective is to connect the social experience of motorcycle riding with the social experience of being part of a national community. Another such example that might be more directly on point is development of mobile legal clinics in Nepal. Hoping to address the lack of knowledge of legal rights and access to mechanisms to address those rights by those in Nepal's rural communities, the A2J project has established 18 free mobile legal clinics, affecting people in Sarlahi, Mahottari, and Rautahat, along with the distribution of legal literacy booklets in local languages. Information distributed includes information concerning rights concerning marriage, caste discrimination, domestic violence and other similar areas of the law. According to one article I read, thees clinics have greatly assisted access to the legal community and legal remedies by otherwise marginalized and disadvantaged communities. Alternatively stated, these clinics have had the cultural affect of making certain members of the community realize their rights and opportunity to act on them.