Steven Friedman Profile

Steven Friedman is Director of the Centre for the Study of Democracy at Rhodes University and the University of Johannesburg.

He is a political scientist who has specialized in the study of democracy. He researched and wrote widely on the South African transition to democracy both before and after the elections of 1994 and has, over the past decade, largely written on the relationship between democracy on the one hand, social inequality and economic growth on the other. In particular, he has stressed the role of citizen voice in strengthening democracy and promoting equality.

He is the author of Building Tomorrow Today, a study of the South African trade union movement and the implications of its growth for democracy, and the editor of The Long Journey and The Small Miracle (with Doreen Atkinson), which presented the outcome of two research projects on the South African transition. He is currently studying the role of citizen action in strengthening and sustaining democracy.

Title of the lecture: "The Fault Lies Not in Our Transition But in Ourselves: The Second Transition and the Deflection of Responsibility"

 

Past Articles

False alarmism makes progress seem like setbacks
Gap between supporters and ANC a key theme at indaba
Hysteria will complicate search for solutions
Money in politics is a problem for business too
Spear row can get us to face our real problem
We must free ourselves from our mental shackles
Demonising the state lets business off the hook

Last Modified: Tue, 30 Oct 2012 12:55:27 SAST