Figure 7. Civil Society Star Symbol

The important mix of all the players in civil society and their influence on each other are becoming more visible thanks to those scholars who compare the overall health of various communities and countries. In “The Prosperous Community,” from Making Democracy Work, a study of the relative health of different regions of Italy, Robert Putnam writes that “Civic was a major influence, not just on the social fabric, but also on the quality of government and commerce.” He concludes, They [the healthy communities] have become rich because they were civic. The social capital embodied in norms and networks of civic engagements seems to be a precondition for economic development, as well as for effective government. (p. 2).

The importance of getting to a more ac cu rate definition and description of civil society was underscored by a recent piece in Foreign Policy, in which Thomas Carothers (1999-2000) takes the various different interpretations of civil society and argues why each is inadequate as an overall argument for the importance of civil society. For example, he indicates that nongovernmental organizations have limitations and in some cases are even undemocratic, that a strong civil society does not ensure strong democracy, and that it is not essential to economic success. I agree with his cogent analysis of the limitations of each part of civil society, but he treats each as though it were the entire definition and never puts them all together as part of a larger concept. He sees the shortcomings of each part to qualify as suitable argument for the importance of civil society but fails to ac knowledge the composite social, political, and economic advantages when each part reflects impressive commitment to community and country, which in my experience is what our civil society is all about. The symbiosis of all these parts of our civil society produces an extra dimension that is far greater than the sum of the parts.

The importance of our civil society to our democracy is indeed a secret of our success as a nation, but the very fact that it is so little understood means that it is always in danger of neglect and attack, and with any significant alteration or diminution of civil society, our freedoms are similarly weakened. Unfortunately, we generally prefer to rely on structures such as representative government and the courts to maintain the marvels of American democracy, but even they deteriorate without the devotion and investment of their citizen masters. The ultimate preservation rests on the forceful awareness of the populace that ultimately our social fabric, our democratic government, and our freedom depend on us. As the great jurist Learned Hand expressed it, I often wonder whether we do not rest our hopes too much upon constitutions, upon laws and courts. These are false hopes; believe me, these are false hopes. Liberty lies in the hearts of men; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it. (Hand, 1991, p. 12).

There is one other fairly basic definitional matter to cover concerning the relationship between democracy and civil society, including which comes first and is the more important. In some quarters, particularly Europe, the two are increasingly referred to interchangeably. Although I agree that civil society is necessary to effective democracy, I do not believe it is a synonym for it. My experience is that the order of importance is democracy and then civil society, with full awareness that a vibrant civil society is most likely to thrive in a vibrant democracy and vice versa. Civil society exists in nondemocratic countries: It is growing in size and importance in Saudi Arabia, for example, and there are democracies where civil society is weak, as in Japan. The central point is that a healthy, vibrant civil society is both the fullest indication of and a precondition for a healthy democracy.

In the United States, we need to be particularly careful not to confuse a public already comfortable with and proud of our democracy. We should not do anything that takes our eyes off its glory and the need to maintain and strengthen it. Therefore, I emphasize that civil society is absolutely necessary to a fully functioning democracy and democracy is the ultimate form of government of, by, and for the people.

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