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To what extent do pressure groups strengthen pluralist democracy? Essay
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To what extent do pressure groups strengthen pluralist democracy?A pluralist democracy is a form of liberal democracy in which power is widely dispersed. It allows for
the promotion of diverse views, interests and grievances freely within citizen’s rights, and is
something that the UK adopts key elements of. Pressure groups are organisations (not in
government or running for power) that seek to create change in public or government policy in the
interest of a particular cause or area. Along with our multi-party system, pressure groups are a main
enhancer of pluralist democracy. As the primary source of functional representation, the three main
types of pressure group (interest groups, cause groups and social movements) collectively
strengthen pluralist democracy to a large extent.
One reason that pressure groups strengthen pluralist democracy is through their extension of the
political franchise. This is seen especially through social movements, which are increasingly
attracting young people. As the voting age in the UK is 18, younger people use pressure groups as a
fundamental platform to air grievances and protest change for their futures. Notably the BLM
movement, founded in 2013 but bought to prominence after the murder of George Floyd in 2020,
attracted many younger activists for protests in the US and UK despite being amidst the coronavirus
pandemic. However, as demonstrated by BLM protestors, pressure groups are increasingly resorting
to civil disobedience which threatens the order of society. Examples include the graffiti of Winston
Churchill’s statue in London to read “Churchill was a racist” and the toppling of the Edward Colston
statue in Bristol, June 2020, which resulted in six conditional cautions. Increasing acts of illegality
undermine the case for pressure groups strengthening pluralist democracy but overall allows for
‘tension release’ and the freedom to express one’s politics. Any criminal acts would simply be
sanctioned, illustrated by the approximate 135 arrests at around 200 BLM protests in the UK last
year, ultimately showing how pressure groups strengthen pluralist democracy and do so while under
restrictions of the legal system to keep order and civil obedience.
Pressure group engagement among young people is encouraged by the rise of social media and
therefore an increased awareness of news, current affairs and inequalities that require action. The
‘Me Too’ movement had its name coined on social media originally in 2006 but became known in
October 2017 after a series of sexual assault allegations were made against Hollywood director
Harvey Weinstein. Alyssa Milano encouraged the use of ‘#MeToo’ on social media to create
awareness of the magnitude of the issue. It may be argued that pressure groups’ social media
presence is a hinderance to pluralist democracy as it encourages ‘slacktivism’- characterised by the
sharing and liking of posts (‘clicktivism’) as well as e-petition signing. This arguably discourages active
participation in pluralist democracy, whether that be work and protests for pressure groups, voting
or writing to MPs, because the illusion has been created to the slacktivist that their low-level online
contributions are substantial. Regardless, e-petitions are put forward for parliamentary debate once
they reach 100,000 signatures, showing that pressure group engagement online is still effective in
strengthening pluralist democracy. The e-petition for a second EU referendum, debated in
parliament on 5th September 2016, is one example.
Encouragement of public engagement and reducing political apathy is another major factor in
pressure groups strengthening pluralist democracy. As UK general elections take place every 5 years
under the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011, pressure groups play a key role in lessening the impact
of ‘participation crisis’ by providing the public another point of access in influencing politics.
Previously, party membership bridged the gap for participation between elections to some extent,
with 3.8% of the electorate belonging to one of the three main UK wide parties (conservative,
Labour and Liberal Democrat) in 1983. Currently, this figure stands at around 1.6%. Voter turnout is
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