Democracy: A Case Study

This book is a collection of Harvard case studies in roughly chronological order about democracy in the United States: its beginnings up to the present time. This covers civil rights, women’s issues, and financial reform. It also includes a case on Citizens United and whether corporate speech should be protected. This volume also includes a case study on public education that seems quite relevant in today’s world.

Because it is a collection, the writing is somewhat uneven. For this reader, the most interesting part is learning more about the genius of James Madison. I did not know, for example, that he was an advisor to President George Washington. Madison read widely on political thought before crafting the Constitution. His scholarship seems to demonstrably prove that we can learn from the past and that the best ideas, when taken together, can form a greater concept. Like many of you, I am anxious to learn more about our country and its democratic institutions. This book would make an excellent focus for a similarly inclined discussion group.