A Populist People’s Democracy
“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the divided Republic for which it hardly stands, a crumbling Nation, under many forms of religious beliefs with liberty and justice for some.” This daily recount of this pledge through my 18 years of public school made me realize the cracks of democracy all within the first line. The United States continues to honor this promise by upholding this democracy. It brings forth an answer to the publics’ desire to equalize the voice of the people to the government. However, this Pledge, turned false promise, has failed the citizens of the United States through a disparity of power, an unrepresentative democracy, and a broken commonwealth of society. But what solves a failed democracy? Populism: A rise in the peoples’ voice to revitalize democracy and push for the public’s ideals. While some argue that Populism undermines democracy and the traditional government values, I argue Populism breeds an effective process of political change that is truly representative of the people, therefore, society must accept populism as the driving force of social evolution and change within the government.
But we have to ask ourselves, who is democracy really for? While American democracy continues to advocate for the wide claim that it rests on the people, why does the average American constantly get neglected time and time again? I argue that the false facade of American democracy only thrives through the blind faith of citizens. Miller states that democracy lies on “the proposition that all legitimate governments grow out of the power of a people… Yet when a large majority of a country’s people vehemently supports policies a critic finds abhorrent, many liberals, even avowed democrats, recoil in horror” (Miller). While democracy proposes a vow to the people, the government utilizes its power to turn a blind eye and focus on a select few, rather than the majority. Therefore, the government and democracy itself loses its intrinsic value, and only serves the elite individuals that dominate the rest of society. Thus, democracy in turn serves as an amplifier to elitist voice and power, and a deafening silencer to the people. With this disparity, one must question what is the great equalizer, how do we, as common people, bring forth true change under this mirage? Consequently, average citizens must act in populism, a movement that reverses a political chain of power, and brings the voice back to the people.
Populism is a political process in which strives to bring equality among disregarded and ignored voices in a disparity of societal standards. As history goes on, populism continues to rise and revolt against established elitists and brings a form of representation among the forgotten societal groups with diminished power and voice. This in turn creates an atmosphere in “which citizens rise up in frustration and anger against what they see as an entrenched “establishment” of “elites” in government, industry and other institutions that ignore their concerns” (Bruno). With inherent disparities among an uneven distribution of wealth and power, citizens bring on a form of populism in order to rise up and gain a voice amongst a sea of elitists. This in turn brings on an impelling wave of evolution that gradual democracy fails to accomplish. Furthermore, I would argue that populism itself truly brings the citizen’s voice to light the most effective way, as it continues to drive the people’s voice, rather than a slow descent into elitist perspectives. In many ways, populism brings on a form of new democracy that comes with tearing old traditions, and repairing it with new foundations.
Contrary to the rise of populism, many argue that populism tears down and undermines democracy, further pushing a chaotic power struggle of the masses. The risks of populism itself allows for further exclusion and disparity among marginalized groups, tipping the balance of democracy towards the disrupted and disgruntled masses. As one continues to rise in populism, the people “often… exclude[s] vulnerable and marginalized populations, such as religious and ethnic minorities and immigrants” and in turn lose the very democracy America has (Witte). The exploitation and struggle could create a power vacuum and fight for power, losing both the credible promises and efforts that democracy holds in America. While the efforts of tackling a democracy may seem daunting and risky to traditional “effective” institutions, I would argue that modern democracy within America settles for complacency. Modern democracy is then fixated on traditional beliefs, rather than changing for the evolution of the people. Over time, the very foundations of democracy must shift to accommodate for the people changing with it. How can democracy thrive with the masses continuing to be repressed, especially focusing on marginalized populations. Thus, populism must be the driving force of effective and true change as it continually evolves for the people. Even through history, American founding father John Adams argues “there never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.” Though I don’t believe that democracy is set on death, I would rather believe that populism itself is an ever evolving process of what democracy becomes, further evolving democracy and representing the people with it. Though these implications strive on political change, popular insurrections and revolts continually shed the risks of populism.
Although these risks of populism do seem appalling, it is a necessary process to welcome populism as the true transformer of mass democracy and belief. From revolts to insurrections, the fame of populism and the rise of violence continually displays itself as a threat to democracy, but don’t let that fool you of what it strives to accomplish. Representative democracy is never a straightforward route, and to be truly representative requires an evolving process of “form[ing] heart and soul of modern democracy as a living reality” (Miller). Populism is the welcoming answer to many individuals that are frozen in a democracy that does not serve them, therefore, in order to change democracy, the people must make an effective change that tears down an old, biased system that is not representative of their individual beliefs, and build anew. Hence, democracy never dies, and populism does not undermine it, but rather pushes for a new, better evolution of what democracy can be for its people. Accordingly, populism continues to persist in order to create a more representative society that expresses the will of a sovereign people. Through “these episodes of collective self-assertion… create representative institutions that can… protec[t] the freedom of religion, and of the press, and the civil rights of minorities” (Miller). These ever changing waves of action against a democracy pushes for a democracy of the people overall. It is an effective process that is inclusive of all people, and does not serve a finite number of a population, but rather bestows the power itself back to the people, the original democracy. These vital changes must be accepted by society in order to allow the growth of democracy and the breeding of essential values of an enduring and lasting system overall.
But why is populism an answer to democracy? How does this continue to move democracy itself and transform a continually evolving society? To this day, America hinges itself on a deeply flawed democracy overall. It instills certain policies such as “an electoral college design to thwart majorities… [a] scene of pitched struggles over the right to vote” (Miller). These policies continue to degrade and silence the public even through representation within the government. These “modern” policies and “representative” governments continue to force a false facade on a limiting democracy. Furthermore, the disparity of clarity between service and order continues to disrupt the public’s voice and faith in the government. In consequence, modern democracy “was not the rule of a sovereign people — instead, democracy is the rule of the politician” (Schumpeter). Since democracy lies not in the people, it is our duty to enforce, and uphold the foundations of democracy, and in turn challenge and question modern democracy. Continuously, as “crowds of ordinary people unite to demand a fairer share of common wealth… revolts against remote elites are essential to vitality, and viability, of modern democracy,” thus challenging the status quo time and time again. These vital reasons demand a fairer, more equalized version of modern democracy, that chooses to evolve, and not settle on traditional beliefs. Therefore, populism is the answer to not destroy, but rather uphold and improve the democracy that precedes us.
Therefore, as a society, we must welcome the rise of populism in order to revolutionize democracy and further represent what we embody as people, rather than elite individuals. It is a constant challenge that we must accept and act on, in order to further the representation, and improve democracy around us. Therefore, when we say “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the improved Republic for which it strongly stands, a United Nation, under many forms of religious beliefs with liberty and justice for all,” we must act on a promise of populism, a successful promise to democracy, and the people that uphold it.
