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...

ASEAN’s role in Addressing Myanmar’s crisis

Oct 5, 2023 | School of Public Policy, Chiang Mai University

Source by : The Star news In February 2021, Myanmar has been facing a transforming a period of political unrest and widespread human rights violations, creating an urgent...

Is Israel proficient at the breach of democratic values?

Oct 5, 2023 | School of Public Policy, Chiang Mai University

Photo source by : Spyware & Democratic Values Is the absence of international laws an excuse for the violation of Israel the breach of democratic principles globally?...

Partisan Polarization’s Latest Victim: Mail-in Ballots

Oct 14, 2020 | Northeastern University

Voter suppression is one of the United States’ most shameful yet open secrets. Beyond voter ID laws, voter roll purges, and polling place closures, the right to vote by mail during a pandemic is now...

The “Right” to Vote in the South

Oct 14, 2020 | Northeastern University

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about unprecedented changes in the world, leaving the right to vote in the United States under siege. One of the pandemic’s most significant impacts will be on the...

A Crisis of Legitimacy for Democracy in Mali

Oct 14, 2020 | Northeastern University

Malian democracy is facing a crisis of legitimacy. Or perhaps, more accurately, Mali is no longer a democracy but it faced a crisis of legitimacy - before the recent coup. The question remains if...

The Trump Presidency: An Incremental Retrogression Towards Authoritarianism

Oct 14, 2020 | Brown University

On September 23, 2020, Donald Trump refused to commit to a peaceful transition of power in the event that he loses the 2020 election to Democratic nominee Joe Biden. The Trump Presidency has been...

The Criminalization of Dissent: Alarming Signs of Democratic Backsliding in Hong Kong

Oct 14, 2020 | Brown University

A subtle revision to official media guidelines has caused an outcry over the state of democracy in Hong Kong. On Wednesday September 23rd, the Hong Kong police force announced their decision to...

Democratic Breakdown Turns Violent in Venezuela

Oct 14, 2020 | University of Georgia

The sweeping reforms of Hugo Chávez not only initiated democratic breakdown within Venezuela, but also signaled a rise in opposition against the increasingly authoritarian regime that remains...

There Is No Democracy Without Reparations

Oct 14, 2020 | Northeastern University

The United States is not a democracy. Though some tout the US as a beacon of representative democracy in the world where economic prosperity is all but guaranteed to those who seek it, those people...

Lebanon Ongoing Crisis

Oct 14, 2020 | University of Georgia

On October 13, 1990, major factions all around Lebanon who have been trying to seize control of the country since 1975, signed a historic peace deal between each other. Throughout Lebanon’s history...

Trump’s Proud Boys Invocation Signals Escalation in Authoritarianism

Oct 13, 2020 | University of Georgia

The president’s recent invocation of The Proud Boys at the presidential debate is an escalation in the erosion of democratic norms by appealing directly to a violent street politics group. This...