Against the Tide by Steven Friedman

The election result has opened up party politics, creating new opportunities to influence decisions. But democrats should worry that this opening up has created openings not for new voices demanding a stronger and deeper democracy but for parties who believe democracy has gone too far. So the election is a wake up call to those who want more democracy to use the new space at least as well as those who want less.

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Steven Friedman is a public commentator and an academic, currently employed as a Research Professor at the University of Johannesburg. He has been writing on South African politics for the entire democratic period both as a scholar and public commentator. He has published books on South Africa’s transition to democracy, the role of the trade union movement, and current South African politics. He has also written columns and articles for several South African newspapers. His writing seeks to use academic research to shed light on current politics but to ensure that this is conveyed in a way easily understood by people who have no academic training.