Description

 They Don’t Represent Us: Reclaiming Our Democracy

“Bestselling Author of Republic, Lost”

In this compelling and urgent book, Lawrence Lessig presents a fresh perspective on the state of American democracy, with a new foreword about the 2020 election. Drawing inspiration from renowned works like “On Tyranny” and “How Democracies Die,” the bestselling author of “Republic, Lost” delves into the heart of the crisis that plagues our nation’s political landscape.

With remarkable insight and a sense of urgency, the author argues that our democracy no longer represents the people it is meant to serve, and emphasizes the need for reform.

Lawrence Lessig highlights a critical flaw that has detached our government from the citizens it is supposed to represent – unrepresentativeness. This flaw has led to a fractured society, where partisan divisions and a lack of understanding of crucial issues have pushed our leaders towards extreme positions. Through meticulous analysis, the author reveals how the fundamental institutions of our democracy, including the media, often prioritize narrow interests over the needs and desires of the nation’s citizenry.

However, Lawrence Lessig does not solely place blame on Washington’s politicians and power brokers. Instead, they argue that the problem lies within all of us. As citizens, we are becoming increasingly uninformed about important issues, while political polling perpetuates and normalizes our ignorance. This feedback loop further distorts the representation of our will within the system.

To address these challenges, the author proposes a series of reforms, ranging from governmental institutions to the public itself. These reforms include public campaign funding to ensure more representative candidates, a reformed Electoral College that encourages the President to represent the entire nation, and a federal standard to eliminate partisan gerrymandering.

Additionally, the author advocates for a reformed Senate, a federal penalty for states that restrict voting rights, and institutions that empower the people to engage in informed and deliberative discussions. Ultimately, this thought-provoking book calls for a collective soul-searching and incites readers to take action to restore the true essence of democracy.

Connecting with Lawrence Lessig

Lawrence Lessig, also known as Larry Lessig, is a prominent American academic and political activist who has made significant contributions to the fields of law and technology. He is widely recognized as a leading proponent of reduced legal restrictions on copyright, trademark, and radio frequency spectrum, particularly in the context of technology applications.

Currently, Lessig serves as the director of the Edmond J. Safra Foundation Center for Ethics at Harvard University, where he is also a professor of law at Harvard Law School. Before his return to Harvard, he was a professor of law at Stanford Law School and the founder of its Center for Internet and Society.

In addition to his academic work, Lessig is also a founding board member of Creative Commons, a non-profit organization that provides free legal tools for creators to share their work with the public. He is also a board member of the Software Freedom Law Center, which provides legal assistance to open-source software projects, and a former board member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a leading advocacy group for digital rights and civil liberties.

Through his various roles and initiatives, Lessig has been a vocal advocate for greater freedom and openness in the digital age. He has argued that excessive legal restrictions on intellectual property and other forms of expression can stifle creativity and innovation, and has worked to promote alternative models that balance the interests of creators, users, and the public at large. His work has had a significant impact on the legal and policy debates surrounding technology and intellectual property, and he continues to be a leading voice in these fields today.

(PRAISE-REVIEWS)

“This book is a tour de force by one of America’s most interesting thinkers about democracy. Lessig finds democratic sclerosis not only in the institutions and arrangements of government but also among we the people. Although Lessig considers familiar policy proposals such as campaign finance reform and breaking up social media monopolies, conventional reforms are far from enough to solve the problem of a democracy under extreme stress. He offers proposals aimed at getting us out of our silos, educated, organized, and deliberating toward a more perfect union.” — Richard L. Hasen, author of Election Meltdown

“This book brilliantly diagnoses some of the fundamental ailments of American democracy. Lessig provides an original and illuminating analysis of how we have been led astray by our reliance on public opinion polling in a fractured media and social media landscape. This book is a must-read for anyone trying to understand — and indeed hoping to reclaim — our democracy.” — Deb Roy, Professor of Media Arts & Sciences, MIT and Co-founder & Executive Chairman, Cortico

“In classic Lessig fashion, this book connects one of society’s biggest challenges—the impact of technology on our society and democracy—to the evolution of our constitution to show how we’ve lost our voice in our system of government. But as the reader descends into a spiral of despair, he pulls them up with the hope of potential interventions that could successfully enact positive change.” — Joi Ito, Director, MIT Media Lab

“Lessig has long been a leader in the fight to save our democracy. In this book, Larry again brings his characteristic, inspirational passion, and insight to the most pressing challenge of our time—the fate of our Republic.  His new insights into “unrepresentativeness” are a distinctive contribution to the national discussion—in particular, his contention that the problem is not just “they” but also “us”.  If you’re concerned about our democracy, it’s a proverbial must-read.  And along with his deep thinking, Larry brings a keen sense of humor and awareness of the absurd that made us wryly chuckle out loud.” — Katherine M. Gehl and Michael E. Porter, authors of Why Competition in the Politics Industry Is Failing America: A strategy for reinvigorating our democracy.

“Lessig eloquently advances his diagnosis of our democratic condition. He then helps us understand how remedies might be possible. A book of lasting importance.” — James Fishkin, Stanford University professor and author of Democracy When the People Are Thinking

“A sweeping analysis by one of America’s most astute and passionate political voices. Lessig shows how America suffers both from a dysfunctional government and the deficiencies of an increasingly polarized and poorly-informed public. More importantly, he points us toward the reforms we need to repair our representative democracy by making elected officials more responsive to the public and making the public more worthy of responding. A compelling new contribution to the most important discussion of our time.” — Martin Gilens, Professor of Public Policy, UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs

“Hard-hitting analysis… Lessig persuasively supports his argument that the U.S. political system is unrepresentative.” — EMissourian.com 

“An impassioned call to all Americans to fight for equal representation.” — Kirkus Reviews

“This bracing report on the state of American politics offers valuable insights for the 2020 elections.” — Publishers Weekly

“A thoughtful, illuminating, nonpartisan, and pragmatic analysis of the changes needed to restore power to the public… In this bold and compelling book, Lessig scrutinizes the laws and forces that led us to this point and guides us toward visionary changes that can reset and restore our faith in our democracy. Given the complexities of the tasks at hand, this a must-read and a much-needed wake-up call.” — Booklist

“Lessig tells it with skill, citing a plethora of studies and historical examples to make a persuasive case about the unrepresentativeness of America’s political institutions.”  — New York Time Book Review

“Lessig paints a searing portrait of a defective political system that is nonetheless full of hope, community spirit, self-empowered individuals, and ways to fix what is broken.” — Foreign Affairs 

“Lessig is right that a representative American democracy, desirable in itself, would also solve most of the problems that now seem insoluble. It is hard to imagine a more thoughtful and appealing companion in the hard work to move our system to where it ought to be: in our own hands.” — Timothy Snyder, bestselling author of On Tyranny and The Road to Unfreedom

“Lessig, a leading proponent of campaign finance reform, now aims at something even bigger: fixing our broken system of representative democracy. This book is brimming with promising and provocative proposals to fix campaign finance, gerrymandering, the electoral college, the filibuster, and the mind-numbing effects of cable news and social media. It is a bold and bracing repair manual for the government of, by, and for the people.” — Michael J. Sandel, bestselling author of What Money Can’t Buy

“Lessig is a modern-day Paul Revere with a warning we must heed: Our representative democracy no longer represents us. The change we need is deep and serious. And it can’t be fixed with one election, party, or politician. This urgent book offers not only a clear-eyed explanation of the forces that broke our politics, but a thoughtful and, yes, patriotic vision of how we create a government that’s truly by and for the people. We ignore his alarm at our peril.” — David Daley, bestselling author of Ratf**ked and Unrigged

“Everything Lessig writes should be carefully read. Read it, consider it, and most importantly, act on it. Our democracy is at stake.” — Nancy MacLean, bestselling author of Democracy in Chains

“The American experiment in representative government is on life support. In his brilliant book, Lessig provides the medical record and a recommended course of care to save the patient.  Every American should read it … stat!” — Roger McNamee bestselling author of Zucked

“Full of original, provocative insights and surprising stories, this book is for all who seek to create effective democracy in America.” — Frances Moore Lappé, bestselling author of Diet for a Small Planet and coauthor with Adam Eichen of Daring Democracy

“Lessig proposes the making of nonpartisan politics to breathe life into the corpse of America’s dysfunctional democracy. He does so with fierce and plainspoken clarity. A challenging work of the political imagination, unsweetened with pious cant.” — Lewis H. Lapham, editor and founder of Lapham’s Quarterly

“Lessig is the thinking man’s popular reformer and this book is a powerful, patriotic, and above all useful guide to the fixes for American representative democracy. Agree or disagree, every citizen should read this book.” — Tim Wu, bestselling author of The Curse of Bigness

“Lessig has long been the leading voice on how corruption undermines American democracy. In this book, he trains his trademark wit and incisiveness on an even bigger problem: Our political institutions, he shows, are deeply unrepresentative. Thankfully, Lessig has an original plan for how to build on the principles of the Founding Fathers to make our institutions serve all Americans.” — Yascha Mounk, author of The People vs. Democracy

“American democracy is buckling under the weight of the public’s deep cynicism. Lessig’s book brings clarity to the many factors feeding this civic deterioration, from our warped campaign finance system to the increasingly balkanized media to the pernicious power of our ‘vetocracy.’ Charting a new course that can revitalize our Republic will demand a reckoning with these deep-seated challenges. This book is a clarion call to do just that.” — Representative John P. Sarbanes