Tyranny of the Minority: Why American Democracy Reached the Breaking Point
Steven Levitsky
(Author)
Daniel Ziblatt
(Author)
Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - A call to reform our antiquated political institutions before it's too late--from the authors of How Democracies Die "[Levitsky and Ziblatt] write with terrifying clarity about how the forces of the right have co-opted the enshrined rules to exert their tyranny."--The Washington PostONE OF THE CALIFORNIA REVIEW OF BOOKS' TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR - A NEWSWEEK BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR America is undergoing a massive experiment: It is moving, in fits and starts, toward a multiracial democracy, something few societies have ever done. But the prospect of change has sparked an authoritarian backlash that threatens the very foundations of our political system. Why is democracy under assault here, and not in other wealthy, diversifying nations? And what can we do to save it? With the clarity and brilliance that made their first book, How Democracies Die, a global bestseller, Harvard professors Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt offer a coherent framework for understanding these volatile times. They draw on a wealth of examples--from 1930s France to present-day Thailand--to explain why and how political parties turn against democracy. They then show how our Constitution makes us uniquely vulnerable to attacks from within: It is a pernicious enabler of minority rule, allowing partisan minorities to consistently thwart and even rule over popular majorities. Most modern democracies--from Germany and Sweden to Argentina and New Zealand--have eliminated outdated institutions like elite upper chambers, indirect elections, and lifetime tenure for judges. The United States lags dangerously behind. In this revelatory book, Levitsky and Ziblatt issue an urgent call to reform our politics. It's a daunting task, but we have remade our country before--most notably, after the Civil War and during the Progressive Era. And now we are at a crossroads: America will either become a multiracial democracy or cease to be a democracy at all.
Product Details
Price
$28.99
$26.96
Publisher
Crown Publishing Group (NY)
Publish Date
September 12, 2023
Pages
384
Dimensions
5.8 X 8.3 X 1.3 inches | 1.1 pounds
Language
English
Type
Hardcover
EAN/UPC
9780593443071
BISAC Categories:
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About the Author
Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt are professors of government at Harvard University and the authors of the New York Times bestseller How Democracies Die, which won the Goldsmith Book Prize, was shortlisted for the Lionel Gelber Prize, and was named one of the best books of the year by The Washington Post, Time, and Foreign Affairs.
Reviews
"[Levitsky and Ziblatt] write with terrifying clarity about how the forces of the right have co-opted the enshrined rules to exert their tyranny. . . . In the book's stark telling, Trump and the steamrolling far right didn't get to where they are despite our revered Constitution. They got there because of it."--The Washington Post "Levitsky and Ziblatt's research shows with bleak clarity that the only thing standing between America and autocracy is the moral conscience and democratic ideals of the Republican partners of this government."--New York magazine "A minority of voters can now inflict a legislative wallop of racism, sexism, nativism, homophobia, transphobia, and economic misery on the rest of us--and never have to pay for it at the polls. This is the 'tyranny of the minority' that Levitsky and Ziblatt rightly fear. No lawless strongman or populist autocracy, it's a product of the very Constitution that we have been taught to admire."--The New Yorker "An exceptionally persuasive book . . . [Daniel] Ziblatt and [Steven] Levitsky are two of America's very best comparative political scientists, with expertise that makes them uniquely well-equipped for the subject they're examining. . . . Tyranny of the Minority is one of the best guides out there to the crisis of American democracy."--Vox "Old democracies tend to last, and so do rich democracies, Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt point out in this searing, unsettling, and essential new book, but American democracy, which is both old and rich, is dying. In Tyranny of the Minority, they explain why, and they explain, too, how to save it."--Jill Lepore, author of These Truths "Among rich democracies, America is uniquely vulnerable to authoritarianism. If that statement surprises you, it shouldn't. In their new book, Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt explain why this is true and how we can fix it: To stop democratic decay, we need to embrace our own tradition of constitutional reform. Just like their previous work, this book is concise, readable, and convincing."--Anne Applebaum, author of Twilight of Democracy "To their credit, they offer no easy solutions, but Levitsky and Ziblatt challenge us to use our voices and our votes to push back against these inherently antidemocratic features of our endangered republic."--Laurence H. Tribe, University Professor of Constitutional Law Emeritus, Harvard
"This eye-opening study, filled with analysis of analogous historical moments from around the world, is an essential primer in the struggle for democracy this century."--Rep. Jamie Raskin, author of Unthinkable
"A well-organized and convincing argument."--Kirkus Reviews
"This eye-opening study, filled with analysis of analogous historical moments from around the world, is an essential primer in the struggle for democracy this century."--Rep. Jamie Raskin, author of Unthinkable
"A well-organized and convincing argument."--Kirkus Reviews
