Most Americans learn as schoolchildren that our country is the greatest democracy in the world. Democracy is part of our national myth and, as such, the pretext for many of our most consequential and disastrous national decisions. When we invaded Afghanistan, and later Iraq, Bush officials claimed we could achieve national security only by enforcing human rights and democratic politics abroad. In the 19th century, supporters of Manifest Destiny based their appeals in part on the spread of western civilization and democracy with it. By establishing a democratic government, the United States had discovered enlightenment as well as a certain moral superiority.

How true is that national story? In a famous 1852 speech, Frederick Douglass laid it bare. As long as slavery persisted, the promises

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