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.
You Can’t Sit with Us: The Practice of Democratic Gatekeeping and How It Has Saved Democracies
The Erosion of an Already Weak Democracy: The Rise and Fall of Jovenel Moïse
Undermining the Feedback Loop: How Trump’s Educational Policies Hinder Democratic Accountability
Is the U.S’s 2022 Election Facing Democratic Backsliding?
Oct 18, 2022 | Boston University
As the US 2022 midterm election continues, there are several phenomena going on in the process. The two political parties; Democrats and Republicans are the two competing...
Democratic Backsliding in Hungary
Oct 17, 2022 | Boston University
Since the founding of the European Union in 1993, the institution’s focus has centered around the principles of a full, representative democracy. Member states of the EU are...
Much A Coup About Nothing: Examining the Distinction Without Difference Between Coups d’Etat and Promissory Coups by Steve Noyes @ University of Louisiana, Lafayette
Dec 10, 2018 | University of Louisiana, Lafayette
Exploring the concept of the promissory coup as it relates to the traditional coup d'etat. The general global decline in coups d’état, while a positive facet of the ever-changing...
Backrubbers of the Elite: on the U.S Surveillance State & Doubting the “Arc of History”
Dec 10, 2018 | University of Louisiana, Lafayette
There is almost no other political expression as irritatingly frustrating to me as the “arc of history” is. The phrase, as popularized by President Obama during his tenure, has become a safety...
A Not So Secret Ballot? By: Jackson A. Jimenez @University of Louisiana
Dec 9, 2018 | University of Louisiana, Lafayette
Are digital voter files undermining free and fair elections in the United States? Could the United States’ democratic electoral processes be under assault at the hands of...
Silent vs. Screaming: How Millennials are Giving Up Privacy while the Silent Generation Hangs On by Molly Simpson @ University of Louisiana, Lafayette
Dec 8, 2018 | University of Louisiana, Lafayette
Pippa Norris’s article Is Western Democracy Backsliding? Diagnosing the Risks analyzes period, life-cycle, and generation effects in public opinion. It was an intriguing read...
Reaching a Compromise on Gun Safety by Matthew Mottet @ Georgia State University
Dec 6, 2018 | Georgia State University
As of October 2018, there have been 47,225 gun-related incidents in the United States, with 11,984 of those incidents resulting in death. The issue our group attempted to resolve is improving gun...
The Ultimate Fight: U.S.A. vs Populism by Kaylan Anderson @University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Dec 6, 2018 | University of Louisiana, Lafayette
In the United States some people may feel that having elected Donald Trump as president has contributed to the increase of populism. Citizens gravitate towards populism in hopes of electing a...
The Viségrad Group: The New Illiberal Democratic Bloc by Kameron Williams @ University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Dec 5, 2018 | University of Louisiana, Lafayette
The fall of communism and the dissolution of the Soviet Union brought hope that the newly liberated Central and Eastern European countries would be able to step out of the shackles of...
Speech into Action: Do Social Media Companies have an Obligation to Curtail Hate Groups? By Zach Hopkins @ Georgia State University
Dec 3, 2018 | Georgia State University
We live in a world where democracy seems to be wavering and polarization intensifying with each passing moment. What role do large social media companies have in aiding this divide or perhaps...
The Caravan of Asylum Seekers by Julie Martinez @ Georgia State University
Dec 2, 2018 | Georgia State University
The United States and Mexico are being faced with a serious immigration problem from the Central Americans seeking asylum. Most of the people migrating are from Honduras, a country that has become...