Includes bibliographical references (pages 187-204) and index.
CONTENTS NOTE
Text of Note
Chapter 1. The "terror" of neoliberalization. The Washington Competitiveness Council ; Globalization and neoliberalization ; Globalization as selective "localization" ; Economic glocalization ; State glocalization ; Neoliberalization ; Laissez-faire ; Welfare retrenchment ; Aidez-faire ; Disciplining ; Neoliberalization and democracy -- Chapter 2. The many faces of democracy. An essentialist alternative ; Liberal democracy ; Deliberative democracy ; Participatory democracy ; Revolutionary democracy ; Radical pluralism -- Chapter 3. New democratic attitudes. Democratic attitudes against neoliberalization ; A democracy that is both urban and spatial ; A right to the city ; Lefebvre's interpretation ; An example: Brazil's City Statute ; Elaborated and flexible ; Cautions ; Democratizing cities -- Chapter 4. On the ground in Seattle and Los Angeles. Seattle in brief ; South Lake Union ; The Seattle waterfront ; People's Waterfront Coalition ; The Duwamish River Cleanup ; Los Angeles in brief ; Homeowners in Los Angeles -- Conclusion: You can hear her breathing. The Challenges ; The Promise ; Beyond the city and neoliberalization ; Democratization against neoliberalization.
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SUMMARY OR ABSTRACT
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Recapturing Democracy is a short yet synoptic introduction to urban democracy in our era of political neoliberalism and economic globalization. Combining an original argument with a number of case studies, Mark Purcell explores the condition of democracy in contemporary Western cities. Whereas many scholars focus on what Purcell calls "procedural democracy"--I.e., electoral politics and access to it - he instead assesses "substantive democracy." By this he means the people's ability to have some say over issues of social justice, material well being, and economic equality. Neoliberalism, which advocates a diminished role for the state and increasing power for mobile capital, has diminished substantive democracy in recent times, he argues. He looks at case studies where this has occurred and at others that show how neoliberalism can be resisted in the name of substantive democracy. Ultimately, he utilizes Henri Lefebvre's notion of "the right to the city," which encompasses substantive as well as procedural democracy for ordinary urban citizens.
PARALLEL TITLE PROPER
Parallel Title
Neoliberalization and the struggle for alternative urban futures