My opponent will, no doubt, show any number of societies that are neither American, European, or white, that have had some form of democratic rule. However, one must consider that the term "Western Society" has taken various meanings throughout history. I knew historically, the Greeks are considered to be the root of Western thought, as well as democracy. And traditionally, Western society is equated with democracy.
However, there are non-democratic, and non-Greek descended Western nations. During the Cold War, the West was considered to be members of NATO (and thusly, the first world). But in the Post-Cold War era, we have seen Japan and other countries become a part of Western civilization. For a while, Western was synonymous with developed nations, yet there are poverty-stricken countries who have adopted the same ideology and governmental systems as what would be traditionally considered the west. Then Christianity was considered to be an essential part of the West, and yet, other non-Christian governments, such as India, execute other aspects of ideology and government, like Democracy, that make them arguably a part of Western Culture, or at least "Westernized".
In essence, Western Society does not mean white, wealthy, Christian, or indeed, limit one to a geographic area. The only apparent things that seems universally held in a Western Society are:
- rule of law - which means the government cannot exercise authority without written laws
created through established methods, and that government itself is subject to those laws.
- human rights - though the ideas of what constitute basic human rights may differ from country to country, there is a general understanding
that one has protection of their own life, as well as enough liberties to provide a decent life.
- freedom of religion - again, the degree of separation can vary. Some Western Nations even have a national religion, but there must exist a
freedom to be of any religion (or none), and the religions themselves must abide by the law, and not dictate them.
- abolition of slavery – (self-explanatory).
As the meaning of democracy is “rule by the people”, one cannot, by definition sustain a lasting democracy without:
- procedures by which to
vote (rule by law)
- keeping the voters placated (human rights)
- allowing religious views to be expressed or ignored (freedom of religion)
- law-abiding populace being free (abolition of slavery)
As governments come from the people they rule over, the populace must therefore be of a willing mindset for that ruling body to survive. Thus a society must exhibit western thought before a stable democracy can result.
REFERENCES:
Democracy - Definition
en.wikipedia.org...
Western Society - Definition
en.wikipedia.org...
Rule of Law - Definition
en.wikipedia.org...
