Inclusionism Core
Democracy
A governance system that distributes participation in collective decision-making among members of a community, society, or civilization.
This page presents the Inclusionism canon's treatment of Democracy. Inclusionism was developed by James Felton Keith and is published with the Keith Institute.
Definition
A governance system that distributes participation in collective decision-making among members of a community, society, or civilization.
Inclusionist Perspective
Democracy is not merely majority rule.
Democracy is a mechanism for legitimizing participation.
Core Principle
The legitimacy of governance increases when affected participants possess meaningful pathways to participation.
Inclusionist Perspective
Traditional democracies were designed for industrial societies.
Future democracies may require new mechanisms capable of representing:
digital participation
global participation
AI-mediated participation
networked participation
increasingly diverse forms of agency
Inclusionist Perspective
Democracy succeeds when participation remains meaningful rather than performative.
Relationships
Core Question
How can participation scale without becoming disconnected from governance?