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.

Donald Trump the Nazi Reincarnate?: Godwin’s Law and How This Phenomenon is Counterproductive to Understanding Democratic Erosion

What do we hope to accomplish when comparing President Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler, a tyrannical perpetrator of genocide?

The Russia-Ukraine War Bodes Poorly for Democracy, But Not in the Way You Think

The Russia-Ukraine War is a serious threat to global democracy through the growing wave of isolationism in the United States, an entity that has typically been at the forefront of fighting authoritarianism across the world.

The Trump Administration’s Attack on USAID

The Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle USAID, increase concerns about democratic backsliding as it could result in a trend with the executive undermining institutional legitimacy.

Castillo’s Failed Self-Coup

Dec 15, 2022 | Sabanci University

Recently, on the 7th of December, Pedro Castillo former president of Peru attempted to give a self-coup d'état. The Peruvian congress held a vote in which it was decided...

The 2022 US Midterm: A Denouement of Populism

Dec 14, 2022 | Skidmore College

The November midterm elections have come and gone, and the American people have spoken: they reject populism. If the rise of election deniers is indicative of...

Polarization through Targeting: The 2016 US General Elections

Apr 27, 2020 | Bilkent University

The fragmentations in society on religious and ethnic divisions, educational and cultural differences, and socioeconomic status lay the groundwork for polarization. Once it is planted, the...

Coronavirus: The New Catalyst for the Authoritarianism in Turkey

Apr 26, 2020 | Bilkent University

The socio-economic and political atmosphere created by the coronavirus pandemic is beginning to be felt deeply in every corner of the world. Some might say this disaster may unite the world back...

The Curious Case of Belarus: COVID-19 Pandemic

Apr 26, 2020 | Bilkent University

Response to COVID-19 pandemic at the state level increasingly presents itself as a better way of observing how well the incumbent leader is capable of conducting effective crisis management, or how...

Oil Prices turn to the negatives. What does this mean for our economy?

Apr 25, 2020 | Suffolk University

This week, Aldo Flores, former deputy secretary of energy for hydrocarbons at Mexico’s ministry of energy, and Marianne Kah, former chief...

From Bleach To Warm Weather: Trump’s Dangerous Coronavirus ‘Cures’

Apr 25, 2020 | Suffolk University

COVID-19 and Filipino Martial Law

Apr 24, 2020 | Rollins College

I will be responding to “Despotism and Democracy in the Age of the Virus”[1] by Roger Cohen in The New York Times. COVID-19 has...

Morality Politics: How “Social Identity Theory” and “Absolute Morality” are Affecting U.S. Democracy

Apr 24, 2020 | Rollins College

Many of us in the United States rely on our values to guide our everyday decisions, and rightfully so. Our morality is what motivates us to help the less fortunate, to always tell the truth, and to...

Trump’s COVID Crisis: A Response to “Trump’s Authoritarian Tendencies and its Relation to Covid-19”

Apr 24, 2020 | Rollins College

It is no secret that the President is currently and has been exercising his power with increasingly less resistance as his administration has pushed forward through scandals and crises. Despite...

Democratic Erosion in the Supreme Court Following COVID-19

Apr 24, 2020 | Rollins College

COVID-19 has highlighted many problems in global governmental systems ever since its initial outbreak in late 2019. However, after reading the New York Times Article “Supreme Court Blocks Extended...