Civitas: School For Democracy

Civitas is an ancient Roman concept which recognizes that a political entity and its citizens are not simply a collection of individuals governed by the rule of law and taken care of administratively but a “community of destiny” that must be held together by a shared ethos and communal practices. The Romans believed that the long term success of any political community depended on its ability to sustain and develop its own particular set of political beliefs. Republican Rome required of its citizens a spirit of active participation and not just an attitude of passive obedience to the state. The ancients thus recognized that the “res publica” was a “public thing” of preeminently moral, even, spiritual concern.

More modern political theorists, such as Machiavelli and Rousseau, realized how important the cultivation of “public virtue” was for the proper maintenance of the state. In their conception, citizens had to develop both the appropriate character and the right ethical codex that would help contribute to the cohesiveness of the polity and its potential flourishing. Taking their cue from the Romans, these two political thinkers realized that for any political community to be called healthy its members must take an active interest in its well being through both serious thought and well-considered act. For them, the polity was not something to be “taken care of” by experts but a “public thing” of existential concern to all.

Today, the dangerous and ongoing weakening of our democracies and the return of the specter of authoritarianism is discussed daily. One of the major reasons for this parlous state of affairs, is the lack of substantial participation on the part of our citizenry in the life of the state. While no one is seriously suggesting implementing the direct democracy of Ancient Athens, there is at least one other way in which we might be able to both preserve and strengthen our democracies: the establishment of Schools For Democracy.

The idea is simple. Educational institutions “Schools for Democracy” would be created where citizens would gather for a period of up to 5 days to listen to public lectures and participate in open seminar-like discussions concerning Democracy, Current Events and Challenges, Democratic Ethics, and any and all other conceivable topics relating to the past, present, and potential future of their democratic polity. Every employer would be obliged by law to offer each citizen 5 consecutively paid vacation days to attend their nearest democratic educational center. The state, either federal or local, would pay both for communal accommodation and communal dining which would contribute to a sense of camaraderie among the participants. The aim of the center would be to not only inform citizens about the nature of their democracy, but to actively hear their opinions and suggestions on how to improve the state in general and their local communities specifically. In this way, dangerous tendencies inherent in the alienating nature of modern day society could be constructively managed and publicly reflected upon. Every citizen would be required by law to attend at least once every three years.

It is my belief that the establishment of such Schools For Democracy would greatly aid in the stabilization of society as a whole, increasing the well being of each and every citizen in particular. In time, Schools For Democracy would become an indispensable part of every Democratic state serving as a safety valve against the pernicious effects of both the daily exigencies of capitalism and the soulless ritualization of democratic politics and parties. And perhaps, one day, in the far future; these Schools for Democracy will have served as the constituent seeds for an even greater global community comprised of global citizens united in a firm because well-considered faith in the rational benefits of democracy and its nourishing practices.

Dan Corjescu teaches at the University of Tübingen’s “Studium Professionale” Program