Introduction

Abstract

‘Democracy depends on all of us: the price of liberty is not just eternal vigilance, but eternal activity’, said Abraham Lincoln. This is how British political theorist Sir Bernard Crick (2008: 18) underscored the vital importance of citizens’ active participation in liberal democratic societies. While this view is widely shared by scholars and policymakers in the West, there is also a broad consensus about the general decline of citizens’ interest in politics and the ‘disinclination on the part of growing sectors of the citizenry to become involved in political and civic life’ (Kivisto and Faist 2007: 136). A seemingly increasing proportion of the population in Western societies are neither vigilant nor active in the political sphere, and their willingness to commit and contribute to their community and become actively engaged in the public space has been dwindling. The ‘bowling alone’ diagnosis of Robert Putnam (2000) illustratively captures this alleged civic passivity, which, as he claims, weakens collective solidarity and mutual trust, and aggravates processes of social isolation and fragmentation.

‘Democracy depends on all of us: the price of liberty is not just eternal vigilance, but eternal activity’, said Abraham Lincoln. This is how British political theorist Sir Bernard Crick (2008: 18) underscored the vital importance of citizens’ active participation in liberal democratic societies.

We are part of the community. We are not going to sit on the periphery.

We are not non-Australians! We are just as Australian as everyone else!

We have a faith that will enhance our citizenship, our participation as Australians.

(Maha Abdo, Muslim community activist from Sydney)