ABSTRACT
Ever since Tom Hayden wrote those words more than 40 years ago, “participatory democracy” has been a core value of the American Left.1 Like the term progressivism itself, participatory democracy is a delightfully ambiguous phrase, one that can be interpreted more or less uniquely by any number of
individuals, yet one that, at the same time, binds them together with a sense of moral purpose, common cause, and deep historical roots.2 Its commitment to participatory democracy helps to define the very essence of the Progressive Left.
