The Demands of Democracy

The growing internal opposition currently being experienced by democratic systems shows that more and more people are perceiving these demands as intolerable, and that the crisis of democracy is also a crisis for community, for our tolerance of others, and for our ability to come together. In this context, constitutional lawyer Sophie Schönberger asks which demands and promises are fundamental to the ‘we’ that is a vital component of any democracy, how the ‘I’ and the ‘you’ can come together to form a ‘we’ in contemporary society, and how democracy as a form of government and a way of life can be made compatible with the coming together and drifting apart of individuals.

*‘Hell may be other people. But beyond hell, which is ultimately bearable, yawns the anti-democratic abyss.’

*Highly topical

*What has caused the loss of faith in democracy?

*Democracy needs social interaction

*A contribution to the debate on the crisis in our community