Ireland's Citizens' Assembly May Just Be the Solution to the West's Culture Wars

This intriguing experiment in deliberative democracy liberalized abortion in a Catholic country without deepening polarization

Democracy is much more than mechanisms of voting and policymaking. It’s also a system of institutions that cultivate progress and peace through exchange, cooperation, and respectful, open discourse. While the advancements of populist nationalism in some corners of the world can make it easy to fall prey to cynicism about the future of democracy, we shouldn’t give up hope. There are still places where democracy continues to thrive.

Ireland’s Citizens’ Assembly is an intriguing experiment in deliberative democracy. Kind of like jury duty in the United States, citizens are randomly selected to participate in a discussion with each other—and experts—to find solutions to contentious issues and make recommendations to elected officials. This has enhanced citizen involvement in the political process while, counterintuitively, keeping populist passions at bay.

Not only is the Citizens’ Assembly resulting in better outcomes on highly charged moral issues like same-sex marriage, abortion, immigration, drug use, and climate change—but it is restoring faith in Ireland’s representative democracy. My new video seeks to understand how and why 100 random people getting together in a conference room has proven to be so helpful.

Watch it below or on YouTube.

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