The political class want the London occupation to make demands of them - but the protestors aren't accepting this power dynamic. They are instead assembling publics: the first step towards understanding the present and building for a better future.
By showing us the possibility of democracy in revolution, they have ignited a revolution in democracy, one that is redefining the meaning of both terms.
It is necessary to find a new system where decisions can only be taken if they have sufficient support from the people to legitimate them. This is why we cannot deny that we have entered into a new era.
For all those who are afraid or suspicious, I invite them to go to the streets of Syria. One main defect with academic writing is that it avoids bombast. Hence, it doesn’t say that those young men and women who have been protesting in the streets of Syria for more than five months are heroes.
Can drawing attention to the regime's excesses force Spain and other countries to put pressure on the Syrian government?
Europe’s crisis is a crisis of democracy. The ‘democracy of the experts’ cannot deliver: representative democracy is incapable of channelling demands in the political system. More participatory and deliberative democracy is needed, as argued in Europe’s public spaces by the movements of ‘ indignad
Press photographers and cameramen are the latest victims of police brutality in Spain. Unfortunately, the story of Gorka Ramos – beaten and detained despite showing proper accreditation – is not unique.
China’s first aircraft carrier made its maiden voyage from Dalian port. The United States has refused to sell F-16 fighter jets to Taiwan. Indian anti-corruption activist, Anna Hazare has been arrested. Russia’s S-500 system could be included in NATO’s missile defense in Europe. All this in today’
From May to July, 2011, this is one diary of the Barcelona protests that charts how they gave a voice to the frustrations and hopes of thousands of working people.
The nature of capitalism over the last three decades has led to the present crisis in the West. A counter-movement is developing across the world, but it is yet to find a name and develop a coherent alternative, a third contribution to openDemocracy's debate
