The activist and community organiser Dave Meslin discusses Teardown: Rebuilding Democracy from the Ground Up (Penguin, 2019), with Joseph Planta.

Teardown: Rebuilding Democracy from the Ground Up by Dave Meslin (Penguin, 2019). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Teardown

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.

We’re all lamenting the state of our democracy. Wherever one is on the political spectrum, there is much room for improvement. A new book suggests something new altogether. In Teardown: Rebuilding Democracy from the Ground Up, author Dave Meslin discusses what’s wrong with democracy, offers examples where improvement could happen, as well as what to do. We all think the system is rigged, so in a way Mr. Meslin suggests how it could be un-rigged. He joined me recently to talk about the book, about how the system works to certain people’s advantage, and how the influence of money is as insidious as it is. I’ll ask him about voter turnout and its decline, as well as electoral reform, and just where there is hope. Dave Meslin is an activist, artist, and community organiser. He formed the Toronto Public Space Committee in 2005, and his TED Talk on apathy has had over a million and a half views. The website for more is at www.teardown.build. The Twitter handle is @meslin. This new book is published by Penguin. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Dave Meslin; Mr. Meslin, good morning.

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