What is Democracy Witness?
Democracy Witness has no partisan or electoral purpose. This is an effort to bring together key groups across the political spectrum to forge a better future, by cooperating constructively or by putting the principle of service ahead of the perceived value of one’s own factional interests.
It is inconceivable to radicals, conspirators and hardliners, that such constructive cooperation could come to exist, but we believe it is possible.
We are advocates for the optimism of explorers and world-builders. We are all involved in building the future; we must be smart, committed, collaborative optimists, or we will fail to build a future that works for people, for democracy, and for the natural and human treasures we most value.
An optimist is not a wishful thinker; an optimist is someone who aims for the best possible outcome and steadfastly puts all effort into achieving that best possible outcome.
It is necessary to use imagination to see clearly through to possibilities that are better than the status quo or the unjust past.
The optimist does not indulge in lamentations about what might not be; the optimist gets busy solving problems to make sure we don’t lose the possibility of the best-case future.
In 2011, when the people of Egypt flooded into Tahrir Square:
There was a moment of awakening across the world, where we recognized that we are one human community, and the right of anyone anywhere to be free and whole individuals is part of our collective story of world-building.
We saw Christians standing guard to protect Muslims at prayer, as the protesters came under ferocious attack; we saw Christian and Muslim leaders embracing and calling for an end to tyranny.
We saw well-to-do business executives joining young students and working-class strikers, women young and old, children and grandparents, secularists and religious parties, gathering peacefully and courageously in front of the dictator’s snipers, to call for justice and democracy.
The clarity and courage of that common purpose, in defense of human dignity and the right to self-determination, was the impetus for launching this publication. Whether it is an everyday town hall meeting, where members of a community weigh in on decisions about local policy, or the struggle of a people to stand against tyranny and terror, we value the role of the witness, whose acts of witness help to safeguard the human rights around which any legitimate institution is built.
We want you to live your democracy.
Democracy is more than choosing your government; sometimes candidates you don’t prefer will prevail. Democracy is a social contract in which we agree that we will honor all of the rights of our fellow citizens, whichever side wins the election. It is this mutual commitment to ongoing solidarity, even in the midst of heated policy disagreements, that makes human freedom possible.
In this newest incarnation of Democracy Witness, we will work to keep ever-present the insight that no leader has a right to abandon the social contract.
Each of us defends, expands, and strengthens the civic space each time we engage in peaceful, solutions-oriented civics, respecting the right of others to disagree, and working toward a collective solution. We hope to provide some insight about making that work in complicated times.
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