For every citizen of the world, there is no more urgent issue than the spread of democracy. Democracy is what the WTO-protestors are calling for; it's the main concern of human rights advocates; and it's only long-term way to end terrorism. But how does democracy spread? What can be done to encourage and support. This remarkable new collection brings together some of the best minds in variety of fields to discuss the conditions that promote and sustain, or undermine and extinguish democratic institutions and ideas. Spanning political thought from ancient Athens to contemporary sub-Saharan Africa, the contributors develop an outline of how democracy develops. Several key factors emerge: Democratic transitions are always heavily shaped by the ideas and practices of past regimes (like tribal traditions in Africa), international political and economic pressure to liberalize (as in Asia) and current economic conditions. The quality of democracy is almost always improved by the elimination of religion as the center of the state, by the move from democracy as protection of the individual from the state to democracy as enhancer of rights, and by the progression from a focus on the individual to a focus on the community. Expansive in its coverage and fundamental in its significance, The Making and Unmaking of Democracy is a volume to learn from, argue against, and expand upon.

Introduction, Theodore K. Rabb and Ezra N. Suleiman Pre-Modern Europe 1. Conditions for Athenian Democracy, Josiah Ober 2. Republic and Democracy: On Early Origins of Democratic Theory, Maurizio Viroli 3. Institutions and Ideas: Planting the Roots of Democracy in Early Modern Europe, Theodore K. Rabb 4. A Response to Ober, Viroli and Rabb, George Kateb Modern Europe 5. Hope, Disappointment and Self-Restraint: Reflections on the Democratic Experiment, Anne Sa'adah 6. Democracy in Spain: Two Paradigms, Edward Malefakis 7. Potemkin Democracy, Stephen Holmes 8. Dilemmas of Democracy in the European Union, Ezra Suleiman Asia, Africa and the Middle East 9. Recasting the Primacy of Politics in Israeli Democracy, Asher Arian 10. Prospects for Democracy in Tropical Africa, Robert L. Tignoe 11. The Nature of South African Democracy: Political Dominance and Economic Inequality, Jeffrey Herbst 12. Democracy in Turkey, Bernard Lewis 13. East Asian Demographic Transitions, Kent E. Calder 14. A Response to Arian Tignor, Herbst, Lewis and Calder Latin America 15. Captialism and Democracy in South America, Jeremy Adelman 16. Democratic Pathways: Crossroads, Detours, Dead Ends in Central America, Deborah J. Yashar United States 17. The Possibilities for Democracy in America, Jennifer L. Hochschild 18. Race, Ethnicity and American Democracy: An (Ungarded) Optimistic View, Sean Wilentz 19. Conclusion