Toward a Democratic Culture

"We must commit to rebuilding the institutions for a decent society," Ernesto Cortés Jr. writes in "Toward a Democratic Culture," his 2006 Kettering Review essay. Cortés argues that America's political polarization and cynicism stem not from moral failure or wealth concentration alone, but from the erosion of Tocqueville's mediating institutions—churches, unions, neighborhood associations—that once taught citizens the habits of deliberation, negotiation, and philia (political friendship) necessary for democratic life. Drawing on IAF organizing victories from Texas bilingual education fights to post-Katrina rebuilding efforts in New Orleans and Houston, Cortés, the IAF's former southwest regional director, contends that only by rebuilding these institutions—and the practical wisdom, or metis, they cultivate in ordinary citizens—can Americans counter the plutocracy and "station identification" politics that have replaced genuine democratic engagement.