Why Americans Still Don't Vote: And Why Politicians Want It That Way

by Frances Fox Piven, Joshua Cohen (Editor)

Americans take for granted that ours is the very model of a democracy. At the core of this belief is the assumption that the right to vote is firmly established. But in fact, the United States is the only major democratic nation in which the less well-off, the young, and minorities are substantially underrepresented in the electorate.

Frances Fox Piven and Richard A. Cloward were key players in the long battle to reform voter registration laws that finally resulted in the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (also known as the Motor Voter law). When Why Americans Don't Vote was first published in 1988, this battle was still raging, and their book was a fiery salvo. It demonstrated that the twentieth century had witnessed a concerted effort to restrict voting by immigrants and blacks through a combination of poll taxes, literacy tests, and unwieldy voter registration requirements.

Why Americans Still Don't Vote brings the story up to the present. Analyzing the results of voter registration reform, and drawing compelling historical parallels, Piven and Cloward reveal why neither of the major parties has tried to appeal to the interests of the newly registered-and thus why Americans still don't vote.

Genres: Politics, Sociology, Nonfiction

352 pages, Paperback

First published September 22, 2000

About the author

Frances Fox Piven is an American professor of political science and sociology at The Graduate Center, City University of New York, where she has taught since 1982. Piven is known equally for her contributions to social theory and for her social activism.

Reviews

[stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

i read this for my social democracy seminar, and it ended up being the basis of my term paper that semester on the youth vote.

then i started actually giving copies of this book to my friends who said they didn't vote for various reasons, but was finally told that was annoying. (hah!) but the thing is, i absolutely believe the thesis of this book, which basically was proven in the 2004 election. and not only that, it assures that people will stay in power unless people get "angry enough" (remember, this was written before 9/11) and that this benefits republicans more than democrats, because angry liberals tend to do things like donate to greenpeace rather than work the polling sites.

it's a fascinating slice of american life and the way we are manipulated, even when we say we aren't going to be part of the system that is manipulating us. one of the most influential books i've read, and the reason i vote in every single election that i can.

also: frances fox piven: genius.

[J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thorough and at times dense reading, but the last chapter is the distilled gem.

[Steven Peterson · Rating 3 out of 5]

These authors have become politicized! Conservatives have attacked their works (most academic research never becomes visible to the extent of that of Piven and Cloward). The focus of this work is why Americans don't vote at very high rates--and why political leaders don't mind. Not sure how compelling the argument is, but it does provoke thinking about the issue. In that sense, the volume makes a useful contribution.

[Jessica]

I wish people wouldn't give their books titles like this. It makes them so unappealing and embarrassing to read, plus it's so much harder to take everything in them seriously, since I go into it expecting a shrill, slanted diatribe. I mean, I guess Piven and Cloward figure anyone who's reading their books already agrees with them, and they're probably right, but still.

I guess the real problem isn't really so much that this title is inflammatory, as it is inelegant. I like a nice title, and this isn't one.

But I must read it nonetheless! I mean, I am interested in learning more about why Americans still don't vote. I'm not as curious about why politicians want it that way. I think I can mostly puzzle that one out on my own.

So far this book is okay. It's the 2000 revision of an older book, and a lot of the research and theories they're citing are pretty old. Still, there's some useful information.

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very few American citizens bother to vote, even in presidential elections. The percentage goes down in state and local elections. Piven examines these statistics and gives reasons why politicians like a low voter turnout.

[Jillian · Rating 1 out of 5]

Interesting subject, but poorly written. It's like reading an especially boring text book or term paper.