Towards a Living Democracy

Democratic theory makes ample use of the term “life,” in speaking of “democratic life,” the democ-ratization of every sphere of life, and democracy itself as living. Yet no comprehensive understand-ing of “life” has yet been established within democratic theory. The Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, arising in response to police brutality and systemic oppression, articulates the urgency of refocusing on life and its meaning. This article employs a grounded theory approach, enriched with participatory methods, to develop the concept of a living democracy in conversation with the BLM movement. Drawing on interviews and a focus group with BLM activists, as well as analysis of the social media hashtag #BlackLivesMatter, the article conceptualizes life as the existence of a perspective that evolves through its fundamental interconnectedness. “Life” is understood as a pro-cess of life-making. The article then outlines living democracy as an ever-evolving assemblage, formed of the constantly changing perspectives of its participants.