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 blogs reflect the views of the student authors, and not those of the Democratic Erosion Consortium.

Lawful Erosion: Is it Legal or No? Maybe…

Recent reports by The New York Times share a growing consensus within the judiciary of an impending crisis, with a lack of clarity creating foreseeable conflict and confusion. The article noted a survey that went to over 400 federal judges; 65 of them responded. These...

Pulling the Alarm: From Washington to Rome, Experts Warn of Rapid Democratic Decline

The United States has long upheld an international reputation as the sword and shield of democracy, championing liberal ideals and warning other nations against the rise of authoritarianism. To such an extent, the U.S. has arguably played the role of a democratic...

Who are supplying Guns for Haiti’s Escalating Violence?

Although steps have been taken to restore democracy in Haiti with the appointment of a governing Transitional Presidential Council, violence continues to escalate in the nation’s capital, Port-au-Prince, and surrounding regions. Therefore, many may ask where...

Germany Begins Discussions Entering a New Era of Worldwide Democracy

Nov 27, 2022 | Boston University

The Futures Forum On November 3, 2022, Germany hosted the inaugural Futures Forum in Muenster. The U.S. took part in the forum as part of a joint effort agreed upon in July...

How Populism Let the Political Wing of a Terrorist Organization Win in Northern Ireland

Nov 27, 2022 | Boston University

In May 2022, Sinn Féin, Northern Ireland’s largest nationalist party, won the most seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly, marking the first time a nationalist party in...

Election Commission Chaos: Are Hard-to-Access Public Meetings a Sign of Democratic Erosion? by Allison Todd

Mar 31, 2019 | University of Memphis

When I was a child, I would ever-so-often hear my mother ask my grandmother what had happened in the most recent election commission meeting; my grandmother, active in the local political sphere as...

Assessing Public Opinion by Rajdeep Singh

Mar 31, 2019 | Rollins College

When looking at daily news, a few topics have been constantly appearing in the last two years. The most frequent of them all: the Brexit Referendum and its fallout in the British parliament. It...

The Divide Between Right-Wing Populists and the Left-Wing Elite by Jacob Buckelew

Mar 31, 2019 | Rollins College

It is the great paradox within the party of the welfare state that economic populism results in a greater level of elitism in Washington. As David Brooks suggests, centralization-as opposed to...

Rhetoric and Reactionism in the Brexit Debacle – by Matt Willis @ Rollins College

Mar 31, 2019 | Rollins College

In his article, Max Fisher of the New York Times describes an intriguing conundrum in the democratic process, and two parallel cases that expose it. At the forefront is a recall election in the town...

Perils of the Green New Deal

Mar 31, 2019 | Rollins College

The Green New Deal, proposed earlier this year, is a non-binding resolution that primarily plans to battle the detrimental effects of climate change, but also advocates for methods to lower economic...

Green Old Deal

Mar 31, 2019 | Rollins College

A country where there is no pollution, and everyone has a job sounds like a perfect place to live. This utopian vision of a state is the end game for the Green New Deal that is presented by the...

Ignoring Constitutional Obligations by Sydney Willis

Mar 31, 2019 | Rollins College

How hyper polarization has led to politicians in the United States ignoring their constitutional obligations Ever since...

Donald Trump vs The Media: A Threat to Our American Democracy? By Samuel Reeder

Mar 31, 2019 | American University

President Donald Trump has been consistently undermining and discrediting the news media in the United States since the start of his campaign back in 2016. The president, who has famously...

What Impeachment Means by Evangelina Wong

Mar 31, 2019 | Rollins College

The presidential election of 2016 was one that stirred the nation. The way that a businessman and television personality, Donald Trump, took over the Republican party and later the presidential...