Constitutional Democracy in Crisis?

Abstract

Are constitutional democracies around the world really experiencing a global crisis? Constitutional Democracies in Crisis? asks whether the apparent weakening of many constitutional democracies around the world is simply part of the normal ebb and flow of constitutional democracy, or whether complaints about the present state of constitutional democracy are largely from people on the political left upset to learn that many of their compatriots do not share their values on such matters as immigration, globalization, and the environment. The contributions include background material on the nature of constitutional crises, essays on the state of constitutional democracy in specific regimes or regions, essays on the influence of such global forces as climate change, religious fundamentalism, terrorism, economic inequality, globalization, immigration, populism, and racism/ethnocentrism, and observations about the contemporary state of constitutional democracy. The book provides a general guide to the state of constitutional democracy during the second decade of the twentieth century that should be useful for scholars, students, and general readers, providing frameworks and information for assessing the contemporary state of constitutional democracy. Finally, the essays diagnose the causes of the present afflictions of constitutional democracies in particular regimes, regions, and across the globe.