{"product_id":"what-has-democracy-done-for-you-lately-how-to-inspire-working-people-to-join-the-fight-to-save-america-hardcover","title":"What Has Democracy Done for You Lately?: How to Inspire Working People to Join the Fight to Save America - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eSaru Jayaraman\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eRayan Semery-Palumbo\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhat happens when the people who keep a democracy running can no longer afford to live in it?\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"No one has done more to move forward the rights of food and restaurant workers than Saru Jayaraman. This is the story of the next steps in the movement, as told by the woman who is creating them.\" --Mark Bittman, author of \u003cem\u003eThe Kitchen Matrix\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eA Bone to Pick: The Good and Bad News About Food\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAcross the United States, millions of Americans work full time--often at two or three jobs--and still fall behind. As wages lag far behind the cost of living, faith in democratic institutions has quietly eroded. For many working people, the question is no longer ideological but painfully practical: \u003cem\u003eWhat has democracy done for me lately?\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eWhat Has Democracy Done for Me Lately?\u003c\/em\u003e, Saru Jayaraman and Rayan Semery-Palumbo argue that the crisis of American democracy cannot be separated from the crisis of economic inequality. Drawing on decades of organizing, original research, and vivid stories--from restaurant workers and caregivers to teachers and small-business owners--the authors show how a broken wage system has drained work of dignity and democracy of credibility. They trace how appeals to \"save democracy\" ring hollow when work doesn't pay, and why symbolic recognition without material improvement leaves millions vulnerable to false populism.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis book offers more than diagnosis. By chronicling the rise of the Living Wage for All movement, it shows how democracy has been rebuilt before--and how it can be rebuilt again--by advancing bold, inclusive campaigns that inspire people and delivering tangible improvements in people's lives that prove that democracy is worth saving. At a moment of deep economic anxiety and rising authoritarianism, \u003cem\u003eWhat Has Democracy Done for Me Lately?\u003c\/em\u003e makes a clear, urgent case: when work pays, democracy works--and without that promise, it cannot survive.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSaru Jayaraman\u003c\/strong\u003e is the president and co-founder of One Fair Wage (OFW), a national organization, campaign, and coalition fighting for a full, fair minimum wage for every person who works in America. She is also the co-founder of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC United). She was listed in CNN's \"Top 10 Visionary Women\" and recognized as a Champion of Change by the White House in 2014 and received a James Beard Foundation Leadership Award in 2015. The author of \u003cem\u003eBehind the Kitchen Door\u003c\/em\u003e, a national bestseller, \u003cem\u003eForked\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eOne Fair Wage\u003c\/em\u003e, (The New Press), she lives in New York.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRayan Semery-Palumbo\u003c\/strong\u003e is a speaker, researcher, and organizer committed to building an America worthy of the people who sustain it. He grew up in poverty and homelessness with his family. He is a graduate of Yale University and holds a PhD in Policy and Economics from the University of Oxford, where he was a Rhodes scholar.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 144\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.8 x 7.1 x 4.9 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e September 29, 2026\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55231804604749,"sku":"9798893851298","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0927\/3304\/7117\/files\/We7tameBF39798893851298.webp?v=1793299841","url":"https:\/\/belfastbooks.us\/products\/what-has-democracy-done-for-you-lately-how-to-inspire-working-people-to-join-the-fight-to-save-america-hardcover","provider":"belfastbooks.us","version":"1.0","type":"link"}