Flawed Democracy and Development

"Sociocultural and Political Challenges in a Flawed Democracy: A Jamaica Case Study is a critical intervention into the discussion of democracy in Jamaica. It is required reading for any serious examination of the social and political challenges in a middle-aged democracy beset by the legacies of race/color and class dysfunctions coupled with an inherited political system that engenders lack of consensus building and polarization. This volume is a comprehensive assessment of the realities of democracy as a flawed but necessary political system." --Jermaine McCalpin, New Jersey City University With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 the world experienced an optimistic wave of democratization. A common narrative was that, in democracies across the world, the change would result in the improvement of lives. Wilson's edited volume examines the case of Jamaica. The authors view that political system as a flawed democracy despite an independent judiciary, free press and an apolitical bureaucracy. Popular participation in Jamaica began in 1962. Yet, the authors challenge the standard view by observing a range of problems from the distrust in government and the related reduction in election turnout, the legacy of colonialization, the theory and praxis of a parliamentary system and international events. The collection of essays presents a detailed analysis of the Jamaican system from the framework of a flawed democracy. --Walter Hill, St. Mary's College of Maryland