Natan Sharansky believes that the challenge of the twenty-first century is to assert our cultural, ethnic, or religious identities, a struggle that has never been more important than now.

Who is better prepared to defend principles in a volatile world? Is it those with strong national, religious, ethnic, or tribal identities who accept democracy, or democrats who view identity as a divisive prejudice? Sharansky argues that valueless cosmopolitanism is dangerous, even in democracies. Together, identity and democracy assert a powerful and benign sense of purpose, but when at odds, they beget fundamentalism and rootlessness.

Natan Sharansky has lived an unusual life, spending nine years as a Soviet political prisoner and nine years as an Israeli politician. In this brilliantly analytical yet personal book, Sharansky and his longtime friend and advisor Ron Dermer make the case for democracy. The authors put nondemocratic societies under the microscope to reveal the mechanics of tyranny that sustain them, and explain why democracy is essential for our security.

Freedom, Sharansky claims, is rooted in the right to dissent, and societies that do not protect that right can never be reliable partners for peace. But lasting tyranny can be consigned to history’s dustbin if the free world stays true to its ideals. The question is not whether we have the power to change the world, but whether we have the will to move beyond Right and Left and start thinking about right and wrong.