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.

A Green Card Once Meant Protection: Now it is Fear

A Green Card Once Meant Protection: Now it is Fear By Fotios E. Meimeteas Imagine you are a single mother in the United States, raising four children who depend on you. You have established a new life, built a home, paid taxes, and lived in the United States for...

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...

Democratic Backsliding: Be Observant

Apr 20, 2026 | Suffolk University

Setting the Stage for Autocracy Democratic backsliding is nothing if not the gradual death of democracy. Democracy is eroded through incremental steps taken by the dominant...

Propaganda, The Iran War, and Democratic Erosion

Apr 20, 2026 | Suffolk University

The U.S. response to the Iran conflict demonstrates how propaganda and narrative manipulation transform foreign policy into a domestic political tool, contributing to...

Will Protests in Morocco Lead to Meaningful Change?

Dec 16, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

Moroccan youth have taken to the streets in protests demanding lower healthcare costs, the right to protest, and other reforms including decreased sports expenditures. The protests have been met...

Dina Boluarte and Democratic Backsliding in Peru

Dec 16, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

Figure 1 Ui-martin September, 2025 With the murder of over 50 protestors in three years, Peruvian President Dina Boluarte has demonstrated her willingness to suppress opposition. Her actions in Peru...

Democratic Erosion: India and the U.S.

Dec 15, 2025 | Georgia State University Perimeter College

Democratic Erosion in the United States and India Intro From 2024-2025, India’s democratic erosion is deeper because of opaque party finance, and because pressures on civil society have made...

Buying Power: Oligarchy and Clientelism in Georgia

Dec 15, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

In 2003, Georgia had a democratic breakthrough. The Rose Revolution ousted the remnants of the state socialist regime and transitioned Georgia into a burgeoning democracy. At the time, the country...

TUNISIA’S AUTHORITARIAN TURN: How President Kais Saied Is Dismantling the Arab Spring’s Only Democracy

Dec 12, 2025 | Georgia State University Perimeter College

When Tunisia's citizens overthrew their dictator in 2011, the world hailed Tunisia's emergence from this uprising as the only country to become a true democracy. For several years, Tunisia served as...

How Trump and his federal forces are using America’s polarization problem to dismantle American democracy

Dec 11, 2025 | Northeastern University

America’s two-party system is seeing one of its largest divides in American history. Belonging to one party or the other can be an immediate reason for hatred of another, and both parties are...

Indefinite Term Limits: How Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele is Further Entrenching His Power

Dec 10, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

On July 31st, 2025, El Salvador’s Legislative Assembly passed a new constitutional amendment 57 to three votes to allow the current president, Nayib Bukele, to run for a third term. The amendment...

A 50-Year Sentence for Facebook Posts: The Implications of Section 112

Dec 9, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

In January 2025, a 30-year-old man from Chiang Rai, Thailand, Mongkol Thirakot, was sentenced to 50 years in prison after being accused of posting 27 Facebook posts related to Thailand’s monarchy....

When the Army Said No: How Military Defection Toppled Bangladesh’s Autocrat

Dec 8, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

On the night of August 4, 2024, Bangladesh’s army chief held an emergency video conference with his generals. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had ordered troops to enforce a curfew and suppress the...