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 blogs reflect the views of the student authors, and not those of the Democratic Erosion Consortium.

Amnesty for Atrocities: Peru’s Democratic Backsliding in the Shadow of Fujimori

Overview of Peru bill No. 366 of 2023, which provided amnesty to those who committed crimes against humanity during the country’s internal conflict between 1980 and 2000, and its context in the country’s ongoing democratic crisis.

What the Madhesi Movement Reveals About Nepal’s Democratic Erosion

The blog post argues that Nepal’s marginalization of the Madhesi community through economic exploitation, political exclusion, racialized discrimination, and constitutional design reveals the 2015 Madhesi Movement as a warning sign of democratic backsliding driven by elite power preservation rather than a simple border or foreign policy dispute.

Namibia’s Troubling Drift Toward Democratic Erosion

This article delves into how the recent 2024 presidential election and contradicting executive laws have greatly impacted the state of democracy in Namibia.

American Xenophobic Populism: Stopping a Manufactured Disease

Apr 13, 2024 | William Jewell College

Most scholars who follow American democratic erosion begin with social polarization and attempt to find some sociological argument for it. Some thinkers, such as Kathy...

Donald Trump and Democratic Backsliding: The Threat of a Populist and More Polarized America

Apr 13, 2024 | William Jewell College

As the 2024 Presidential election comes close, many of us are asking the same fearful questions: if Donald Trump finds his way to power again, will this ultimately...

Abiy Ahmed: Yet Another Nobel Peace Prize Winner Falls from Grace

Dec 2, 2020 | Brown University

A Nobel Peace Prize cannot be revoked; however, The Norwegian Nobel committee should add a measure to it's statute to allow for the removal of this ultimate prize from its fallen angels, namely...

The Rise (and Fall) of the AfD: Germany’s Identity Crisis

Dec 2, 2020 | Brown University

Since World War II, defining what it means to be German has been a taboo subject. Celebrating national identity is seen by many Germans as a step towards the type of nationalism that led to the rise...

Social Media Spreading Misinformation and Disinformation in American Society

Dec 2, 2020 | University of Georgia

As the technological 21st century continues to advance, social media platforms become more numerous and more influential in American society. Though the Constitution grants freedom of the press, the...

Viktor Orbán’s Emergency Powers Push Hungary Further Towards Autocracy

Dec 2, 2020 | University of Georgia

A lurking dictator in the making, Viktor Orbán and his right-wing nationalist Fidesz party are dismantling Hungarian democracy. Through the obstruction of checks and balances, election interference,...

Misdiagnosed: Why We Can’t Blame COVID-19 for Autocratic Consolidation

Dec 2, 2020 | Brown University

Many news outlets and humanitarian organizations have reported that the COVID-19 pandemic is presenting new and unparalleled levels of decline in freedom in countries around the world. Freedom House...

Democracy or Oligarchy?

Dec 2, 2020 | Brown University

As the election results in favor of Joe Biden are becoming officially certified, and the courts are consistently denying credence to Trump’s frivolous claims of election fraud, many Americans...

Kaczyński Causes Decline of Polish Democracy

Dec 1, 2020 | University of Georgia

After the fall of the communist Soviet Union in 1991, Poland was left to be a free country. Poland was at peace with their neighbors and had the opportunity to build a country off of democratic...

Anti-Immigration Rhetoric and Its Threat to Dutch Democracy

Dec 1, 2020 | University of Georgia

Some threats to democratic health might not be as blatant as one might think. Rather they could accompany regular developments such as a country’s immigration status. In recent years the Netherlands...

U.S. Trust on Elections

Dec 1, 2020 | University of Georgia

In the last 20 years, the United States has seen an increasing rise in the lack of trust in election results. Public trust in elections began to erode with the Supreme Court's decision in Gore v....