Democratic Erosion University Course Student Blog

Students enrolled in our course are encouraged to write for the course blog, and to read and comment on posts from students at other participating universities. The blog offers students the opportunity to analyze current events through the lens of the theory and case studies they engage with through the course.

These are student blog posts written by student participants in the Democratic Erosion Course. These posts were not written by nor represent the views of the Democratic Erosion Consortium.

Food Security is Rooted Abroad

Global fertilizer supply chains connect geopolitical events abroad to food production at home in ways most consumers don’t see.

The Meaning of Silence : What the moment of silence for Melissa Hortman says about American democracy

On June 14, 2025, the lives of Melissa Hortman who was a House speaker in Minnesota and her husband Mark were taken in what authorities believe to be a politically motivated act of violence. The same day Senator John Hoffman and his wife were also shot and...

The New Future of Warfare? How Social Media is Inflating Tensions Between the U.S. and Iran.

Social media is moving to the forefront of the ongoing tensions between the U.S. and Iran, with political elites from both sides of the conflict using social media as a weapon to fabricate narratives and generate AI videos to publicly denounce the actions of one...

Donald Trump’s NSPM-7 Follows Domestic and International Trends In Stealth Authoritarian Power Grabs

Nov 3, 2025 | University of Georgia

In late September, President Donald Trump followed his ad-hoc federal mobilizations of National Guard servicemembers and nationwide deployment of ICE officers with a...

How Bosnia’s Postwar Framework Made Dodik Inevitable

Nov 2, 2025 | University of Georgia

When Vladimir Putin met with Milorad Dodik at a diplomatic forum in Sochi on October 2, 2025, he greeted him as “President Dodik.” This moment drew attention because two...

2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine: How Russia Uses Conflict to Dissolve Democracies

Mar 26, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton

As of February 21 2022, Russia has once again invaded and occupied areas in sovereign Ukraine. What is known thus far about this particular invasion is that it occurred after Russia recognized...

Democracy in Haiti Is in Freefall: Will It Ever Stop?

Mar 25, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton

In July 2021 Haiti’s president, Jovenel Moïse, was assassinated. Prior to his death, there were various protests and riots calling for him to step down because of his corrupt regime and his refusal...

A Tale of Two Internets

Mar 25, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton

While former President Donald Trump’s new social media network, Truth Social, may end up becoming a “Big Failure” rather than the “Big Tent” it set out to be, alternate social media platforms for...

Why Russia’s Ukraine Invasion Is a Threat to Global Democracy

Mar 25, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has begun a military crisis in Europe, however, the crisis extends far beyond Ukraine's borders. Global democracy has been at risk for several years and Putin's...

Stealth Authoritarianism in China, and What it Means for the Rest of the World

Mar 24, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton

In 1982 term limits were imposed on the office of the President of China. They were created by Deng Xiaoping (then president of China) to prevent another Mao-style autocrat from coming...

Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine and the Decrease in Right-wing Populist Support for Putin

Mar 24, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton

On the morning of February 24, Putin ordered a “special military operation” under the guise of demilitarizing, denazifying, and democratizing Ukraine. This came after weeks of stationing hundreds of...

January 6th, An Attempted Executive Coup

Mar 24, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton

January 6th, 2021 is a day that Americans will not soon forget. The United States experienced an attack on its democracy as violent protestors stormed the Capitol, spurred by an unfounded belief...

Big Tech Involvement in Russia-Ukraine Conflict: The Dangerous Precedent it May Set

Mar 23, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton

With the Russian Invasion of Ukraine taking place this past week, Putin has triggered the greatest military crisis on the European continent since the Cold War. Over this time the global stage has...

The Far Right and Democratic Erosion

Mar 17, 2022 | University of Georgia

Although the far right has always had a presence in American politics, especially due to the fact that American politics is slanted so far to the right, in recent years, it has become a more...