Nonprofit Groups Can Help Curb Capitalism’s Excesses, Author Writes

A Civil Republic: Beyond Capitalism and Nationalism
by Severyn T. Bruyn

The unchecked expansion of global capitalism has contributed to the decline of civil society, writes Severyn T. Bruyn, a professor emeritus at Boston College. He decries the marriage between business and such areas as education, medicine, and religion. As for-profit colleges grow in number, more hospitals convert from nonprofit status to for-profit, and religious leaders increasingly use business techniques to increase the size of their congregations, values that benefit all people are lost, he says.

But Mr. Bruyn is not without hope: He advocates a “civil republic” in which the nonprofit world plays a central role in curbing the influence of business and helping to promote the common good.

He proposes creating a “web of federations” to ensure a balance of economic and civic values. Nonprofit associations representing different professions or interests could meet with government-appointed civil commissions to ensure that the voices of ordinary people are heard. For instance, groups like the Association of American Colleges and Universities might provide the civil commission on education with ideas to resolve conflicts between for-profit and nonprofit schools and colleges, says the author.

In addition, he writes, nonprofit organizations might become watchdogs over business and government, representatives of professional associations could serve on corporate boards, and experts from universities and other nonprofit institutions could ensure that government contracts with private companies are in society’s best interest.

Publisher: Kumarian Press, 1294 Blue Hills Avenue, Bloomfield, Conn. 06002; (860) 243-2098 or (800) 289-2664; fax (860) 243-2867; kpbooks@aol.com; http://www.kpbooks.com; 289 pages; $25.95; ISBN 1-56549-199-8.