Democracy is a very complex, but oversimplified word. Yet there is an element of irony when the word is used by those who are in positions of power to rule the people, namely politicians. If democracy is for the people, then it is a word to be defined by each individual and group. Sadly, ?rule by the people? is often ?rule by some people over all other people,? as opportunities for those living in the United States are still unequal as many groups continue to remain marginalized.
Artificial categories are used to devalue the life experiences of many and to ignore their contributions to our society. Part of this is because the reality that the current consensus regarding democracy is the ?Washington Consensus,? which is promoted from the top down through a vast army of universities, intellectuals, think tanks politicians, militaries, corporations, NGOs and the media. With the conformity of sound coming from the top-down, the vibrations and static tend to stomp out the voices speaking from the bottom up. One such voice will be speaking this Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Graduate Life Center at Donaldson Brown (room F). The speaker, Maria Ramos, will be speaking about her life experiences as an undocumented worker and her political activism with the group Mexicans Without Borders (Mexicanos Sin Fronteras), which is an organization that has done amazing work on behalf of economic justice, promoting human rights and the battle for a more genuine democracy.
