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.

The Boiling Point of Election Violence: Democratic Erosion in Tanzania

Once hailed for its relative stability in an otherwise politically volatile East Africa, Tanzania has exploded into violence and political protest following the controversial reelection of President Samia Suluhu Hassan.

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.

Do Competing Foreign Interests Dissuade Democratic Progress?

Nov 24, 2023 | Northeastern University

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the fall of Yugoslavia, many nations abandoned their communist alliances and ideologies, and flocked to Western alliances...

Scapegoating and Civil Liberties: How the Ugandan Anti-LGBTQ Bill is Dragging Down Democracy

Nov 22, 2023 | Northeastern University

“Something evil has been put into society. We would be attacked, we would not be safe, Uganda is not safe”, says Diane, a young Ugandan woman forced to flee the country due...

The Resurrection of Mas as a Step Towards Democratic Stability in Bolivia

Oct 27, 2020 | University of Chicago

Last weekend, on October 18th, Luis Arce of the Movimiento al Socialismo (Mas) party won the Bolivian presidential election by a comfortable margin and Jeanine Anez, the evangelical leader of the...

Top of the Pops: The Populist Reality Show Star with the Lowest Approval

Oct 26, 2020 | Georgia State University

How can we classify the self-pitched-Playboy-Cover-model son of a wealthy, racist real estate developer as a populist when he is neither like the people he claims to represent nor does he enact...

Uprising in Belarus: Protesting Is a Universal Language

Oct 26, 2020 | Georgia State University

In 1966, just two short years before his life would be taken by the infuriated opposition, Martin Luther King, Jr. said in an interview, when asked about “Black Power,” that “a riot is the language...

The Mansfield Blue Wave

Oct 25, 2020 | Suffolk University

Democracy is at its most fragile during times of war, terrorism, and elections. The United States just happens to be at a crossroads of all three. With constant war being funded in the Middle East...

Misperception Is Reality: The Psychology of Political Polarization in the United States

Oct 25, 2020 | Suffolk University

Americans are not as polarized as we think we are. A new report from Beyond Conflict, a non-profit that leverages research from cognitive and behavioral science to address issues of conflict...

BLM Insight from Co-Founder Opal Tometi: How A Hashtag Led To A Worldwide Race Movement

Oct 25, 2020 | Suffolk University

One of the brains behind the Black Lives Matter movement and Human rights activist Opal Tometi was invited by NYU for a webinar hosted by professors Pamela Newkirk and Deborah Wills on October 7,...

Exploring the Structural Causes Behind Hungary’s Backslide from Democracy

Oct 25, 2020 | University of Chicago

Earlier in 2020, while the pandemic dominated news headlines across the world, the NGO freedom house pushed out a silent but stunning report. One deeply alarming takeaway - there are now less...

Social-Political Distance: Problematic Partisanship in Remote Campaigns

Oct 25, 2020 | Suffolk University

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated weaknesses present in democracies across the world. Freedom House reported that the condition of democracy and human rights has worsened in 80 countries, much...

President Erdogan and the Preeminence of AKP Rule Devastates Turkey’s Democracy

Oct 25, 2020 | Suffolk University

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey has challenged Turkey's scant democracy, through exceptional use of oppression against journalism and democratic representation, extreme military hostilities...