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.

The Erosion of an Already Weak Democracy: The Rise and Fall of Jovenel Moïse

Jovenel Moïse's presidency marked a dangerous shift from Haiti's already shaky democracy to overt authoritarianism. Delayed elections, unchecked abuse of executive power, and violent suppression of resistance became the norm. By the time of his assassination in 2021,...

Undermining the Feedback Loop: How Trump’s Educational Policies Hinder Democratic Accountability

In a larger trend of censoring opinions which the Trump administration views as undesirable, the Trump administration’s actions towards schools and universities has a negative impact on democracy as a whole. Such a system depends on the free transmission of...

Democracy Six Feet Under: How Disinformation is Burying Philippine Democracy Alive

Philippine democracy is in great danger once again now that the two families who benefited the most from disinformation – the Marcoses and Dutertes, are in power and have turned against one another. As both camps sling disinformation against each other, the...

Albania is on a slow authoritarian spiral

Oct 31, 2023 | Salem State University

Former Prime Minister of Albania Sali Berisha and his son-in-law Jamarber Maltezzi are embroiled in corruption scandals. Berisha is charged with money laundering and...

The 2023 Elections in Zimbabwe and Growing Authoritarianism

Oct 30, 2023 | Salem State University

The August 2023 presidential election in Zimbabwe resulted in the reelection of the current ZANU-PF President, Emmerson Mnangagwa. This will be his second and final...

Chileans Protest for a New Constitution

Nov 23, 2020 | Northeastern University

From the Occupy Wall Street movement in the United States to the Ni Una Menos collective based in Argentina, protests against neoliberal policies and states have increased in the past decades. As...

Authoritarianism and Donald Trump

Nov 23, 2020 | Northeastern University

President of China, Xi Jinping, in a recent speech to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC), announced that China plans on opening a “super-sized” economy. The APEC forum also includes...

Court-Packing: Proposals to Erode Constitutional Order and Endanger U.S. Democracy

Nov 23, 2020 | Georgia State University

The idea of court packing insinuates that democratic erosion is underway. Courts often operate as guardrails to democracy but once they are overtaken by anti-system parties, they serve as effective...

Symptomatic: Argentina Is Infected With Threats to Its Democracy

Nov 23, 2020 | Suffolk University

The stability of Argentinian democracy is under threat. Multiple precursors to democratic erosion are present, including ongoing threats to both vertical and horizontal accountability exemplified by...

Ways of Discussing Politics

Nov 23, 2020 | Suffolk University

Are there better ways to engage in politics? How did the United States respond to the results of the 2020 Presidential Election? In this blog post, I talk about the importance of discussing politics...

What We Can Learn From the Irish: Lessons in Populism

Nov 23, 2020 | Suffolk University

2016 was the year of the populist; The Guardian noted that the words "populist" or "populism" were in almost 2,000 articles written by them in 2016, compared to only 1,000 the year before. In 2016:...

Benin 2021: What Is an Election in the Absence of Competition?

Nov 22, 2020 | Suffolk University

The word “Democracy” holds far more than its definition, it represents a promise. The promise of control over one's own life, control of government systems, and most importantly, the knowledge that...

How Comedian Beppe Grillo’s Social Movement Online Shifted Italian Politics Into An Uprising of Political Populism

Nov 22, 2020 | Suffolk University

An online comedian, actor, and blogger, Beppe Grillo, shifted his personal profession into becoming the founder of a political movement, changing Italy's standards to a pre-democratic nation; in...

Even if It Is a Fragile Economy, Greece Still Survives During the COVID-19 Pandemic—But Poor of Freedom of Expression

Nov 22, 2020 | Suffolk University

November 22, 2020 by Surochinee Santiwisak According to Conor Stewart, the researcher shows the statistics of a number infected COVID-19 cases in Europe zone, and Greece is the country that has the...