Civic Wealth: A Framework for Understanding Civic Engagement provides a foundation for a structural analysis of political inequality, introducing the concept of “civic wealth” to offer a more holistic and complete picture of political engagement and disengagement. The authors explore this concept in hopes of adding to a growing body of work aimed at increasing civic engagement among those most excluded, disenfranchised, and devalued by our current political system. Civic engagement and political participation cannot be “mobilized” by sporadic, election-oriented efforts. Instead, the authors assert we must develop strategies that take into account the outcome of historical processes and institutions that have incentivized and facilitated participation for some communities and not others.
