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AFTER IDEOLOGY : IS THERE AN ALTERNATIVE TO LIBERAL DEMOCRACY?

This seminar delves into the basics of liberal democracy and discusses potential alternatives such as socialism, theocracy, authoritarianism, and anarchism. Join the debate on whether there is a viable alternative to liberal democracy.

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AFTER IDEOLOGY : IS THERE AN ALTERNATIVE TO LIBERAL DEMOCRACY?

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  1. AFTER IDEOLOGY: IS THERE AN ALTERNATIVE TO LIBERAL DEMOCRACY? HAZEL CARLISLE

  2. What are we doing? • The basics of liberal democracy • Are there alternatives? • Research task • Debate (40 mins)

  3. WHAT IS A DEMOCRACY? “Government of the people, by the people, for the people” Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address

  4. WHAT MAKES IT A LIBERAL DEMOCRACY? “A democratic system of government in which individual rights and freedoms are officially recognized and protected, and the exercise of political power is limited by the rule of law” Oxford Dictionary

  5. Characteristics Plurality Rule of Law Civil society Representative Popular rule Accountability Individuals rights and freedoms Constitution Equality Free and fair elections Limited government

  6. PROBLEMS WITH LIBERAL DEMOCRACY • Is it the best, or are we biased because it reflects Western values? • Capitalist economic structures • Majority rule (minority oppression) • Not consistently democratic (only sometimes - elections, and on certain issues) • Constitution restricts liberty • Voter turnout • Electoral corruption • Elitism’

  7. ARE THERE ALTERNATIVES?

  8. SOCIALISM • Single party-state which rejects Capitalism and instead favours common ownership, equality and cooperation, where Socialism can be established through state policies • Example: Cuba, since 1959 (Marxist-Leninist variation)

  9. THEOCRACY • Form of government where God is the head of state and source of authority. Laws are administered by religious agents such as priests. • Example: ISIS since establishment of ‘Caliphal state’ in 2014 • Political form of Islam, different to Islam as a religion, characterized by moral conservatism, literalism, attempting to implement Islamic values in all spheres of life through establishing Sharia Law and often associated with militancy

  10. AUTHORITARIANISM • Strong central power and limited political freedoms. This type of government presents itself as necessary in order to deal with pervasive societal problems as a means to gain legitimacy. Limited political pluralism and minimal social mobilization. • Example: Maduro’s Venezuela, since the constitutional crisis of 2017

  11. ANARCHISM • The opposition of authority. Stateless, as the state is seen to be harmful and unnecessary. The belief that individuals are better off cooperating and establishing a mutual respect between each other in order to operate. • Example: Federation of Northern Syria, Rojava

  12. FREEDOM IN THE WORLD Norway: 100/100 UK: 93/100 www.freedomhouse.org North Korea: 3/100 Syria: 0/100 Ghana: 83/100

  13. Research and creating presentation: 20 minutes Presentation length: 3-5 minutes RESEARCH • In your groups, research your designated case study and create a short presentation to give to the rest of the group • Aim: to explain your case study in more depth (i.e. characteristics etc) and suggest whether it functions as a viable alternative to liberal democracy • Case Studies: • Socialism, Cuba • Theocracy, ISIS • Authoritarianism, Venezuela • Anarchism, Rojava • To get ready for the next task, you may wish to make notes about good points made in the presentations

  14. IS THERE A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE TO LIBERAL DEMOCRACY?

  15. Planning: 15 minutes Debate: 25 minutes POLITICAL DEBATE Debate Format • Is there an alternative to liberal democracy? Base your debate on an analysis of the research done during this seminar • Divide into two groups and argue either for or against • Plan an opening statement (3 key points of your argument) • Consider the other side’s possible arguments and develop rebuttals (why are they wrong?) • How might they rebut your arguments? Why are you still right?

  16. RESEARCH QUESTIONS Is liberal democracy the best means of promoting our interests? Given recent global events, is Fukuyama’s argument that we have reached “the end of history” still valid?

  17. REFERENCES Arblaster, Anthony. Demoracy, 3rd Edition, 1987, 1994, 2002, Buckingham and Philadelphia, Open University Press Bobbio, Norberto, Liberalism and Democracy, 1988, 1990, 2005, Verso, London and New York, translated by Martin Ryle and Kate Soper Collected authors, including Marx, Engels and Lenin. The essential left : four classic texts on the principles of socialism, 1960, London, Allen & Unwin Fukuyama, Francis. The end of history and the last man, 1992, London, Penguin Fukuyama, Francis. The origins of political order : from prehuman times to the French Revolution, 2011, London, Profile Gray, John. Liberalism, 2nd Edition, 1986, 1995, Buckingham, Open University Press Herz, John H. (ed.). From dictatorship to democracy : coping with the legacies of authoritarianism and totalitarianism, 1982, Westport, Greenwood Press Heywood, Andrew. Political ideologies : an introduction, 5th edition, 2012, Basingstoke and New York, Palgrave Macmillan Huberman, Leo and Sweezy, Paul M. Socialism in Cuba, 1969, New York, New York Monthly Review Press Kolstø, Pal and Blakkisrud, Helge (eds.). The New Russian Nationalism: Imperialism, Ethnicity and Authoritarianism 2000-15, 2016, Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press Linz, Juan J. (ed.). Totalitarian and authoritarian regimes, 2000, Boulder, Lynne Rienner Publishers McLellan, David and Sayers, Sean. Socialism and democracy, 1991, Basingstoke, Macmillan Meltzer, Albert. Anarchism, arguments for and against, 7th Edition, 2000, Edinburgh, AK Press Newman, Michael. Socialism : a very short introduction. 2005, Oxford and New York, Oxford University Press Ritter, Alan. Anarchism, a theoretical analysis, 1980, Cambridge and New York, Cambridge University Press Ross, Cameron. Federalism and democratisation in Russia, 2002, Manchester and New York, Manchester University Press Stern, Jessica and Berger, J.M. ISIS: The State of Terror, 2016, London, William Collins Ward, Colin. Anarchism : a very short introduction, 2004, Oxford, Oxford University Press Weiss, Michael and Hassan, Hassan. ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror, 2016, New York, Regan Arts Wilkinson, Paul. Terrorism versus Democracy: The Liberal State Response, 2nd Edition, 2006, London and New York, Routledge: Taylor & Francis Group

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