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 are student blog posts written by student participants in the Democratic Erosion Course. These posts were not written by nor represent the views of the Democratic Erosion Consortium.

Food Security is Rooted Abroad

Global fertilizer supply chains connect geopolitical events abroad to food production at home in ways most consumers don’t see.

The Meaning of Silence : What the moment of silence for Melissa Hortman says about American democracy

On June 14, 2025, the lives of Melissa Hortman who was a House speaker in Minnesota and her husband Mark were taken in what authorities believe to be a politically motivated act of violence. The same day Senator John Hoffman and his wife were also shot and...

The New Future of Warfare? How Social Media is Inflating Tensions Between the U.S. and Iran.

Social media is moving to the forefront of the ongoing tensions between the U.S. and Iran, with political elites from both sides of the conflict using social media as a weapon to fabricate narratives and generate AI videos to publicly denounce the actions of one...

Nayib Bukele is the Rodrigo Duterte of Latin America. He just won a second term.

Jun 25, 2024 | University of the Philippines, Diliman

by Julian Matthew Formadero and Lance Carlo Mendoza In May 2016, with 16 million votes, the Philippines elected Rodrigo Duterte as its 16th president. The foul-mouthed...

The Spring Before the Fall: Civil Society and Resistance in Myanmar

Jun 24, 2024 | University of the Philippines, Diliman

Myanmar has been experiencing a turbulent phase in its political and social strata brought about by the Burmese Spring Revolution, a “wave of resistance” after the country’s...

Modi’s Efforts to Define the “Real People” of India.

Nov 13, 2019 | Salem State University

On August 31st, India released a revised citizenship list for the territory of Assam. The NRC, the National Registry for Citizenship, decided to exclude roughly two million people from this list --...

The Mussolini Rhetoric and the Modern Day Fascism Movement

Nov 13, 2019 | University of the Philippines, Diliman

A few months ago, I was playing a video game called Sniper Elite 4; a third person action stealth video game that was set in the post-Nazi era of 1943 amid the fall of the Fascist Italian regime...

Protest Over Tax Lead to Prime Minister Resignation

Nov 12, 2019 | Salem State University

Last month, mass protests against proposed taxes on “WhatsApp” forced the government and Prime Minister of Lebanon to step down. The argument over whether Lebanon is a country of resilience or a...

Bolsonaro’s Pride Burns the Amazon

Nov 12, 2019 | Salem State University

How Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's claims contradict facts During the month of August, it came to international attention that the Amazon Rainforest was burning. And yet, Brazilian President...

China Hates “Sharp Power,” but the Feeling Is Unfounded

Nov 9, 2019 | University of the Philippines, Diliman

China is unhappy with the growing use of the term “sharp power” to describe its overseas influence activities. Unfortunately, its criticism is unfounded. China is unhappy with the growing use of the...

The New Populism of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky

Nov 4, 2019 | Sacramento State University

To the detriment of democracy, populism has returned in force with a new face in many countries of the world, and Ukraine is no exception. (Freedom House 2018) The election of Volodymyr Zelensky to...

Moving forward together

Nov 2, 2019 | University of Memphis

I was able to attend to Erica's Sugarmon campaign talk, from there I learned that Erica could be the solution for Memphis issues on crimes, poverty and specially on education as well.Â She is...

Local Politics Trumps Pop Politics

Oct 29, 2019 | University of Memphis

The Importance of Local Representation As the U.S. continues to embrace the spectacles of political performances on the biggest stages of American politics, it is important to remind ourselves of...

MATA: A Brighter Future Costs Money

Oct 28, 2019 | University of Memphis

The Memphis Area Transit Authority (MATA) is the public transportation provided in Memphis, Tennessee. The system was founded in 1975 to help serve the Greater Mid-south. September 25, 2019, Jim...