Political Scientist Spotlights the ‘Shadow of Unfairness’ in Democracy

In his new book The Shadow of Unfairness: A Plebeian Theory of Liberal Democracy, Jeffrey Green, an associate professor of political science, says a person’s socioeconomic status on average determines future opportunities, from education to career advancement.

Using an interdisciplinary approach, Green mixes philosophy, history, social science, and literature to probe the meaning of democracy in contemporary societies permanently tainted by socioeconomic inequality, turning to plebeians of ancient Rome as his muse.

“While the plebeians understood themselves as second-class citizens, they also recognized that part of the meaning of democracy is to identify and regulate the most advantaged, something not commonly done in contemporary liberal democracies but which has an untapped progressive potential,” Green says.

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