Local Self-Government and the Right to the City

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Politics, City Planning & Urban Development
Cover of the book Local Self-Government and the Right to the City by Warren Magnusson, MQUP
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Warren Magnusson ISBN: 9780773597297
Publisher: MQUP Publication: June 1, 2015
Imprint: MQUP Language: English
Author: Warren Magnusson
ISBN: 9780773597297
Publisher: MQUP
Publication: June 1, 2015
Imprint: MQUP
Language: English
Despite decades of talk about globalization, democracy still depends on local self-government. In Local Self-Government and the Right to the City, Warren Magnusson argues that it is the principle behind claims to personal autonomy, community control, and national self-determination, and holds the promise of more peaceful politics. Unfortunately, state-centred thinking has obscured understanding of what local self-government can mean and hindered efforts to make good on what activists have called the "right to the city." In this collection of essays, Magnusson reflects on his own efforts to make sense of what local self-government can actually mean, using the old ideal of the town meeting as a touchstone. Why cannot communities govern themselves? Why fear direct democracy? As he suggests, putting more trust in the proliferating practices of government and self-government will actually make cities work better, and enable us to see how to localize democracy appropriately. He shows that doing so will require citizens and governments to come to terms with the multiplicity, indeterminacy, and uncertainty implicit in politics and steer clear of sovereign solutions. The culmination of a life’s work by Canada’s leading political theorist in the field, Local Self-Government and the Right to the City ranges across topics such as local government, social movements, constitutional law, urban political economy, and democratic theory.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Despite decades of talk about globalization, democracy still depends on local self-government. In Local Self-Government and the Right to the City, Warren Magnusson argues that it is the principle behind claims to personal autonomy, community control, and national self-determination, and holds the promise of more peaceful politics. Unfortunately, state-centred thinking has obscured understanding of what local self-government can mean and hindered efforts to make good on what activists have called the "right to the city." In this collection of essays, Magnusson reflects on his own efforts to make sense of what local self-government can actually mean, using the old ideal of the town meeting as a touchstone. Why cannot communities govern themselves? Why fear direct democracy? As he suggests, putting more trust in the proliferating practices of government and self-government will actually make cities work better, and enable us to see how to localize democracy appropriately. He shows that doing so will require citizens and governments to come to terms with the multiplicity, indeterminacy, and uncertainty implicit in politics and steer clear of sovereign solutions. The culmination of a life’s work by Canada’s leading political theorist in the field, Local Self-Government and the Right to the City ranges across topics such as local government, social movements, constitutional law, urban political economy, and democratic theory.

More books from MQUP

Cover of the book Growing Up Canadian by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book Blockades or Breakthroughs? by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book The Fundamental Things Apply by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book Canada: The State of the Federation, 2011 by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book Fred Taylor by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book Easy Prey Investors by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book On Governance by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book Singing from the Darktime by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book Triquet's Cross by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book The Art and Science of Stanislaw Lem by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book Churches and Social Order in Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Canada by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book A Surgeon in the Army of the Potomac by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book Power without Law by Warren Magnusson
Cover of the book Pensionnats du Canada : Les séquelles by Warren Magnusson
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy