Democracy

This was when the Berlin Wall came down and everyone was saying democracy is coming to the east. And I was like that gloomy fellow who always turns up at a party to ruin the orgy or something. And I said, “I don’t think it’s going to happen that way. I don’t think this is such a good idea. I think a lot of suffering will be the consequence of this wall coming down.” But then I asked myself, “Where is democracy really coming?” And it was the U.S.A….So while everyone was rejoicing, I thought it wasn’t going to be like that, euphoric, the honeymoon. So it was these world events that occasioned the song. And also the love of America. Because I think the irony of America is transcendent in the song. It’s not an ironic song. It’s a song of deep intimacy and affirmation of the experiment of democracy in this country. That this is really where the experiment is unfolding. This is really where the races confront one another, where the classes, where the genders, where even the sexual orientations confront one another. This is the real laboratory of democracy. ~Leonard Cohen

Along with “The Future” and “Anthem”, “Democracy” forms the thematic backbone of Cohen’s album The Future. It is an album that invites us to consider not only our response to major events taking place in the world at large, but to contemplate the deeper question: If this is the situation now, then where are we headed? The Future was born out of the social and political upheavals of the late 80’s and early 90’s, and they were numerous and significant, a time which certainly had people asking themselves these questions, a condition similar in some respects to the world we live in today – every generation faces its own critical issues – yet regardless of the gravity of the concerns the same questions keep being asked. And people have different ways of answering. Leonard Cohen’s “Democracy” outlines a political response.

Cohen begins the song identifying a few generational concerns. The “hole in the air” is a nod to the hole in the ozone layer, an environmental threat which came to prominence in the 1970’s and, to the applause of many, was addressed by the world leaders who signed on to the Montreal Protocol in 1987. The Tianenmen Square uprising in China, a doomed protest demanding democratic reform, received global attention in 1989. From the “wars against disorder” prevalent world wide as civil order broke down in a number of places where dissenting citizenry challenged various forms of authority, to the ongoing fight against crime and crisis apparent in the “sirens night and day”. From the “fires of the homeless”, a widespread condition and a national embarrassment for the world’s richest nation, to the “ashes of the gay” where the rising movement that fought for gay rights suffered murder on occasion – all were important concerns and most of them apparent in the United States itself which Cohen had made his primary home. Some of these generational concerns found remedy over time, but some stubbornly persisted while new ones arose and are in evidence today. The global outcry for racial justice triggered by the death of George Floyd, the uneven response of countries to the Covid epidemic and the economic, social and physical suffering it has generated are two examples, not to mention the very real and serious divisions plaguing the U.S. and the political fallout to come from the presidential election.

The following verse mentions sources people may turn to for answers to these issues, some humourous, some serious, some hopeful and some useless. The “crack in the wall” Cohen fans may connect to the memorable lines from Anthem: “There is a crack in everything/That’s how the light gets in” and some may see a reference to the fall of the Berlin Wall and its accompanying hope of democratic advancement. The “visionary flood of alcohol” though amusing is not likely to solve any of the world’s problems. For those who place their hope and trust in spiritual solutions there is mention of the Sermon on the Mount, a biblical reference of which Cohen acknowledges the significance, but is unable to unravel. Whether from those moments of calm, personal reflection from “the silence/On the dock of the bay”, perhaps a reference to Otis Redding’s popular song “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay”, or the corporate economic power of “the brave, the bold/The battered heart of Chevrolet”, there may be contributions to the process of democracy.

The desire for democracy and its promise of social justice grows from a variety of places. From the sorrows arising from life on the street to the hopes of the unifying power of the “holy places” where the races find the common ground to foster harmony – it is the promise of resolution inherent in the democratic process that is wished for. From the misery into which families can fall “from the homicidal bitchin’/That goes down in every kitchen/To determine who will serve and who will eat” – it is, again, the promise of resolution as it is for women praying “at the wells of disappointment” not only in the United States but also in the “desert far away. And now the declaration “Democracy is coming to the USA” sounds like an affirmation.

Moving from the variety of issues, to finding answers, and on to the generation of hope, the affirmation continues in the chorus: “Sail on, sail on/O mighty ship of state”. Chart a course to the “shores of need”. You need to maneuver the “reefs of greed” and the “squalls of hate”, and there is no shortage of issues to which those terms can apply, but the process is capable of doing so only as long as the effort is not abandoned: “Sail on, sail on, sail on, sail on”. It is an apt extended metaphor Cohen uses that is intended to reassure.

As you step into this detailed lyrical landscape Cohen has drawn through the first three verses it becomes clear that democracy extends far beyond the simple idea that everyone gets to vote on their leadership. It starts there but a healthy democracy shapes and contains its government, sanctions its institutions and promotes the sensible development and application of its laws. The process is certainly open to compromise and can be lamentably slow, sometimes accompanied by great suffering and the chaotic clash of interests, nonetheless, it is more responsive to the desires of its citizens than the top down systems of authoritarian or totalitarian regimes. The fourth verse echoes some of these points. The regard for democracy is a primary national consideration in America. Though you can find the best and the worst of society here, all the necessary elements are in place to achieve some degree of just resolution with a whole range of issues through policy and law: “Its here they got the range/And the machinery for change”. As for the “spiritual thirst” Cohen sees in Americans it is, perhaps, to the theological underpinnings of a democratic system that he refers. The broader context on which American democracy rests is justice whether in social, legal or political terms. It is an expression of the golden rule recognized by all the world’s great religions: do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Treat others as you would want to be treated – it is this sentiment that informs the needs and the clash of issues he has already mentioned: from the Tianenmen uprising to the wars against disorder to the sirens, the homeless and the gay community justice, in one form or another, to one degree or another is at the bottom of all of them. Cohen takes this one step further in mentioning the broken family and the lonely. These are issues where it is doubtful that law and policy can have any effect. In this regard it requires that the heart be open “in a fundamental way”. This is a process that can only operate on a spiritual level. Cohen, if you are curious enough, elaborates on this subject in his song “The Guests” from the Recent Songs album.

It should come as no surprise to any fan that Cohen finds a way to incorporate the relationships of women and men into a song about the broad applications of democracy when equality in social, political and business affairs remains an ongoing issue for women – and men, too, have been given a wake up call with the advent of the Me Too movement, to point out one example, and thus the lines: “It’s coming from the women and the men/Oh baby, we’ll be making love again”. To bring the verse and the discussion to a close Cohen draws a comparison between the democratic process and the rise of the tide as it responds to the push and pull of the heavenly forces: “imperial, mysterious, in amorous array”. The  exercise of democracy is not a destination to be arrived at, it is a constant process that involves continual practise and attention. In that sense democracy is always in the process of coming to the USA. And the song moves on to the chorus once again reaffirming the need for and the promise of the process.

Bringing the final verse to a personal note Cohen points out that although he loves the country, he recognises that there are moments and events that cannot be justified or accepted. He witnessed first hand from his home in Los Angeles the rioting that unfolded from the Rodney King debacle. And it is not a question of choosing sides, he is neither left or right, just going about living his life as we all do. But there are things of consequence that should be valued and promoted, democracy, in its fullness, being one of them. So he is “stubborn as those garbage bags/That time cannot decay” and speaking out on this matter. He may be junk but he is “still holding up/This little wild bouquet: Democracy is coming to the USA”.