Description
Book SynopsisAs things stand, a commitment to weak democracy and strong constitutionalism ensures that a range of elite groups, actors, and institutions political, economic, intellectual, and legal hold considerable sway over constitutional matters, leaving less room for the participation of ordinary people. With the continued primacy of liberal constitutionalism, constitutional law has come to represent and facilitate the centrality of judicial power and authority. In Democracy and Constitutions, Allan C. Hutchinson warns against this deference to a legal elite on questions of constitutional meaning. For Hutchinson, an over-reliance on constitutional law, and a lack of attention to democratic politics, keeps people from influencing the moral and political character of society; it saps civic energies and relegates ordinary people to the sidelines.
Engaging and provocative, Democracy and Constitutions charts a course away from the elitism of the present and toward a more de
Table of Contents
1. Democracy and Constitutions: A Fresh Beginning 2. A Constitutionalist State of Mind: A Deeper Look 3. Constitutional Origins: Undemocratic Beginnings? 4. A Higher Justice: Some Fundamental Problems 5. Making Changes: Constitutional Updates 6. Striving for Democracy: An Endless Journey 7. Towards ‘Democratic’ Courts: A Salvage Operation 8. A Time for Change: Democratic Constitutions 9. Beyond Courts: Toward Democratic Institutions 10. Laughing and Remembering: Putting Democracy First
