Reinventing Democracy in the 21st Century: Global-Local Strategies of Human Rights Cities
by Jackie Smith (University of Pittsburgh)

Decades of economic globalization have transformed states and social relations, fueling inequality and exclusionary politics around the world. Social movements have historically been the key agents of democratization, and this presentation explores how a trans-local movement for the “right to the city” combats economic and political polarization by advancing a human rights “globalization from below.” As powerful states advanced neoliberal globalization from above, grassroots movements in cities around the world have been building cross-city and global networks to support popular political participation and defend rights to basic needs. By mobilizing grassroots knowledge and networks and engaging with global institutions and movements, activists hold leaders accountable to global human rights standards and build social cohesion and inclusionary politics. She draws from participatory work in U.S. cities to illustrate how activists engage with global human rights institutions as part of a multi-scale strategy to strengthen both local democracy and the global democratic order.