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Not Here: Why American Democracy Is Eroding and How Canada Can Protect Itself
By Rob Goodman. 2023
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Politics and government, Canadian non-fiction
Synthetic audio, Automated braille
What does it mean to live beside an eroding democracy? As this powerful and timely book argues, that question will…
define the next generation of Canadian politics.As a congressional staffer in the United States, Rob Goodman watched firsthand as a rising authoritarian movement disenfranchised voters, sabotaged institutions, and brought America to the brink of a coup. Now, as a political theorist who makes his home in Canada, he has an urgent warning for his adopted country: The same forces that have upended democracy in America and around the world are on the move in Canada, too. But we can protect our democracy by drawing on a set of political, cultural, and historical resources that are distinctly of this place. In Not Here, Goodman outlines four such resources. First, the rejection of the dangerous idea of one &“real&” Canadian people. Second, the refusal of political charisma and founder-worship. Third, a set of social programs—embattled but still standing—that empower neighbours to see one another as equals. And fourth, Canada&’s longstanding search for an identity separate from the great power with which it shares a continent. Today, that great power is a democracy in decline, and so defending what makes Canada distinct matters more now than ever before. Canadian difference is not a curiosity, a luxury good, or a vanity item. It is a democratic immune system. Laying bare the historical roots of today&’s politics and making an urgent case for action, Not Here is a roadmap for safeguarding a democracy under unprecedented threat.
Canada: Beyond Grudges, Grievances, and Disunity
By Donald J. Savoie. 2023
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Canadian non-fiction
Synthetic audio, Automated braille
Canada’s political structure runs contrary to North America’s economic geography and the north-south economic pull. Canada imported political and administrative…
institutions designed for a unitary state, and its political leaders have struggled to make them work since the country was founded. Because of this, many Canadians, their communities, and their regions view themselves as victims, to a greater degree than groups in other Western democracies do. Our federal government has shown a greater willingness to apologize for historical wrongs than other Western countries. Canada also outperforms other nations in helping victims make the transition to full participants in the country’s political and economic life. Donald Savoie maintains that Canada continues to thrive despite the many shortcomings in its national political institutions and the tendency of Canadians to see themselves as victims, and that our history and these shortcomings have taught us the art of compromise. Canada’s constitution and its political institutions amplify rather than attenuate victimization; however, they have also enabled Canadians to manage the issue better than other countries. Canadians also recognize that the alternative to Canada is worse, and this more than anything else continues to strengthen national unity. Drawing on his extensive experience in academe and as an advisor to governments, Savoie provides new insights into how Canada works for Canadians.