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.

Why the Yellow Vests Movement in France?

Nov 27, 2022 | Boston University

Yellow Vests Protests, one of the social movements in France, also known as the “Yellow Vests Protests”, or the “Yellow Jackets Protests” aka Yellow Vests Movement....

Economic Elite Cooptation in Authoritarianization: The Case of Nazi Germany

Nov 27, 2022 | Boston University

The economic elite in a society wield a disproportionate amount of power when it comes to determining the health of the regime. One such case that is most well-known in this...

The Flow of Democracy in Bhutan

Apr 6, 2020 | Georgia State University

It’s often argued that democracies run on a supply and demand system; demand being civil society, and according to Michael Fowler, supply being “aggregated into four categories of rational choice...

COVID-19 Adds to Mistrust in United States Government

Apr 6, 2020 | Boston University

The current coronavirus, or COVID-19, pandemic occurring around the globe is causing there to be mistrust in governments. Specifically, citizens are wondering is their government is telling the...

The Inefficacy of Trump’s COVID-19 Response Delegitimizing American Governance

Apr 6, 2020 | Boston University

Like the rest of the world, Americans have a lot on their minds right now. With the U.S. death toll from COVID-19 reaching 10,000 just this morning, Americans are understandably distressed over the...

Losing Faith: Fear Tactics, Cynicism, and Auguries

Apr 6, 2020 | Rollins College

“Democracy’s Enemy Within,” an article published by the Economist in August of 2019, discusses the fatal flaw that is deteriorating many of the world’s modern democracies from the inside out:...

Art of Persuasion: How do Presidential Candidates Get the Votes?

Apr 6, 2020 | University of Memphis

What are the key factors of a successful presidential rally? Charismatic voice? Convincing arguments in support of your candidacy? Maybe exposing facts about your competitors? How do our candidates...

Trump’s Dismantling of the Last Institution Able to Hold Him Accountable: the Bureaucracy

Apr 5, 2020 | Boston University

During the raging Coronavirus epidemic, in March of 2020, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Anthony Fauci, broke his usually professional demeanor in a press...

Little to No Resistance in an Age of Resistance?

Apr 5, 2020 | University of Memphis

With the occasional riot in the street, a march, or tiki torches being flown, one could assume that there would be resistance everywhere and anywhere during President Trump's tenure. Yet what about...

Memphis city council meeting Jan. 21, 2020

Apr 5, 2020 | University of Memphis

Unfortunately, with my schedule I could not attend a political event in person. This ok though because it made me discover that all the Memphis city council events are recorded and...

Save Bethlehem Center

Apr 5, 2020 | University of Memphis

In the meeting about the city’s budget what should and shouldn’t be funded comes up and one of the subjects that arise is community centers. Bob Mendes, Councilmember At-Large, twenty minutes into...