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.

Are you MAGA, even? How Polarization Ties Into Democratic Erosion

By definition, democracy requires multiple parties to function, but the proudest democracy of the modern age is facing issues as a direct result. The United States is currently experiencing one of its most politically polarizing climates in history, resulting in...

How Recent Discriminatory Kansas Legislation is Accelerating Democratic Backsliding in the U.S.

As Kansas’s discriminatory SB 244 becomes law, America is closer than ever to abandoning democracy and becoming a competitive oligarchy.

Fear Wins Votes: Trump’s Violations and Consistent Support

This blog evaluates how Donald Trump’s political success stems from his use of fear-based rhetoric and polarization, which reshape voter priorities, weaken democratic accountability, and allow violations of democratic norms to occur without consequence.

A Seemingly Controversial 15 Minutes

Feb 13, 2026 | Boston University

Every February, a football team earns the right to call itself “world champions” by winning the Super Bowl. However, one of the most exciting aspects of the night, aside...

Tunisia Under Saied: The Unraveling of the Arab Spring’s Lone Success Story

Feb 12, 2026 | Boston University, Featured

On January 31, 2026, Tunisian President Kais Saied extended the country’s state of emergency once more, now marking ten consecutive years of its being in effect. While he...

Fighting Fake News: Lessons from the World’s Top Target

Dec 15, 2024 | Brown University

2018 was a year of awakening in Taiwan. Two high-profile events threw the consequences of fake news into relief. First, Su Chii-cherng, the envoy to Osaka for the Taipei Economic and Cultural...

Fighting Fake News: Lessons from the World’s Top Target

Dec 15, 2024 | Brown University

2018 was a year of awakening in Taiwan. Two high-profile events threw the consequences of fake news into relief. First, Su Chii-cherng, the envoy to Osaka for the Taipei Economic and Cultural...

Can Democracies Wait Another 2,500 Years to Meet Today’s Needs?

Dec 11, 2024 | Brown University

In 500 BC, during Athens' golden age of democracy, the voting age was set at 18. Over 2,500 years later, this threshold remains the same in the vast majority (90%) of countries. However, as...

Présidence Impériale: Executive Aggrandizement in Macron’s France

Dec 10, 2024 | Brown University

Romantic evening strolls by the Seine, fragrant cafes and boulangeries, political crises and popular unrest—what is more quintessentially French than these classic Parisian experiences? France, one...

In the U.S. and Western Europe, similar immigration backlash is a symptom of two different problems.

Dec 9, 2024 | Brown University

As the United States and Western European countries confront historic surges in migration, the backlash-fueled success of far-right parties has increasingly been characterized as a global...

Time to Say Au Revoir to Laïcité

Dec 9, 2024 | Brown University

For the past three decades, one article of clothing has captivated the attention of the fashion capital of the world: headscarves. From Marine Le Pen to Emmanuel Macron, no French politician has...

The Digital Divide: Social Media’s Role in Polarization and Democratic Backsliding

Dec 5, 2024 | Brown University

It was a week after Donald Trump won the US 2024 Presidential Election. My little sister texted me frantically: “Mom keeps accusing Dad of voting for Trump. She can’t get off TikTok… She’s...

Addressing the coup-demic: Why Regime Change Matters for Democratic Erosion

Dec 5, 2024 | Brown University

On the very first day of my “Democratic Erosion” seminar, I voiced my unease about the state of democracy in the Sahel—a region currently experiencing an unprecedented wave of political instability....

The Power of the Young: A New Era of Democracy for Bangladesh

Dec 5, 2024 | Brown University

Throughout Bangladesh’s history and into the present, student- and youth-led movements have spearheaded efforts to influence political change. Examples like the 1969 revolt against Pakistani...