Get the state back

by Hilary Wainwright

Get the state backHilary Wainwright, a British sociologist and political activist, says, "Lets get back to the country." The book, written by the author after exploring examples of popular democracy and exploring the rest of the world, has been published in many areas including Porto Alegre in Brazil, Luton in England, Newcastle, East Manchester, Trondheim in Norway, Grotamare in Italy, And records of experiments in which the public defended publicity against the market economy by their own hands. Through these experiments, the author suggests ways to see how popular democracy can be realized in real political reality.

Paperback

First published July 31, 2003

Reviews

[Malcolm · Rating 4 out of 5]

With so much of the debate about neo-liberalism in recent years focussing on mass global resistance (think Seattle, Prague, Genoa and the like) and global features (think, banking crisis leading to recessions, concentration of power in the hands of a few uber-wealthy individuals and corporation) this reminder that there is local struggle and success, that popular democracy is still feasible, is timely (although I suspect some tighter editing would have made it better – there are places where the bigger picture got lost in the detail, minutiae even). That said, the book fits a bigger political picture – both in terms of the work Wainwright does as editor of Red Pepper (I think Britain's finest activist magazine of the left) and over the years as an activist (see her work on industrial democracy – The Lucas Plan – and on work in the Greater London Council in the 1980s – A Taste of Power) in building a vision and practice of a democratic, activist, transformational left-wing politics. The issues that she is exploring here are vital in struggles for a more just society where the state and the economy serve the people. Essential reading (as is Red Pepper).

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

often way too dry despite very interesting ideas (and hopeful ones)

[Clement]

Reclaim the State: Experiments in Popular Democracy