Standing with the Public: The Humanities and Democratic Practice

For thirty years, the National Endowment for the Humanities has stood for the humanities as vitally important to a democratic nation. Yet to many Americans the Connection still seems tenuous. What can the humanities bring to public life? How can democratic practice include the humanities? Over a three-year period representatives of the Kettering Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Federation of State Humanities Councils held a continuing "conversation" on these questions. This book, a product of that extensive dialogue, suggests ways in which the humanities community can better interact with the public to increase civic participation and enhance deliberations on important issues.