From “Defending Democracy from its Christian Enemies” by David P. Gushee
Political scientists Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, in their crucial 2018 book How Democracies Die, summarize authoritarian political behavior into four key categories:
- rejection of (or weak commitment to) democratic rules of the game
- denial of the legitimacy of political opponents
- toleration or encouragement of political violence
- readiness to curtail the civil liberties of opponents, including the media
Levitsky and Ziblatt argue that written constitutions and laws and a well-functioning judiciary are crucial in preventing antidemocratic authoritarianism, but that norms of mutual toleration and institutional forbearance are “fundamental to a functioning democracy.” The classical tradition of “civic republicanism,” which emphasizes the citizen virtues required to sustain politics aimed for the common good, calls this norm “civility.”
Again, we are reminded that democracy is a culture, not just a legal system. All cultures have norms. If these norms are functioning effectively, they do not often need to be discussed. It is only when norms are being violated or weakened that we remember that they are there, and why they are there. Various democratic norms are being eroded in many nations today. Some of us are remembering how important they are as we see them being trampled.
Democracy and authoritarianism exist on a spectrum and are best understood in dynamic terms. Democratic practices in any polity can range from robust to nonexistent, and at any time democracy can be described as strengthening or weakening. Freedom House ranks nations on a 0 to 100 democracy scale, and always presents the direction of movement when describing what is going on in a country. That direction is crucial. Caring citizens must always be monitoring it.
The politics of a country is a living thing, and at any moment can be moving in more healthy or less healthy directions. The concern for many of us is that the political direction of many nations, including some with a substantial democratic tradition, has been trending away from democracy. The United States offers a breathtaking example.