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...

Democracy Backsliding and Myanmar Migrants in Thailand

Oct 23, 2023 | School of Public Policy, Chiang Mai University

Myanmar experience long lasting civil war and many people escape to the neighboring countries to find safety life and seek to refuges. According to the International Labor...

What the Exodus of Election Officials Means for Democratic Erosion

Oct 22, 2023 | University of Pennsylvania

Amid growing violent threats and increasing administrative burdens, a surge in resignations among local election officials signals trouble for U.S. democracy. In the...

A Lethal Mix: Russia and Ethnocentrism’s Effects on Kosovar Democracy by Hannah Shelton @ University of Memphis

Apr 1, 2018 | University of Memphis

The tension between Kosovo Albanians and Kosovo Serbians has been at a boil ever since Kosovo’s birth. However, the ethnic strain took another complicated turn on March 27, 2018 when a Serbian...

What Press Freedom Rankings Miss About Pakistan by Ali Raza Galani @ The University of Memphis

Apr 1, 2018 | University of Memphis

Reporters without Borders ranks Pakistan as 139 out of 180 countries in the 2017 World Press Freedom Index, making it one of the freest in Asia when it comes to reporting on politics. The report...

Resistance Through Persistence: The Affirmative Action of the Saratoga Immigration Coalition by Hannah Hoey @ Skidmore College

Apr 1, 2018 | Skidmore College

As an international student in Saratoga Springs, I have a vested interest in the welfare of my fellow immigrants in this city. However, living on campus at Skidmore College is rather its own bubble,...

Democratic Turmoil Causing Hardship in Poland by Pragathi Guruprasad @ University of California, Los Angeles

Mar 30, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles

For many years, Poland was regarded as the leading pro-democracy nation within Eastern Europe. Its seamless transition from communism was an example for other countries to follow. It soon became the...

First Amendment Education by Wallace Anne Cloud @ Skidmore College

Mar 30, 2018 | Skidmore College

This week I attended a forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Saratoga County entitled “The First Amendment: Our Obligation to Assemble, Protest, and Protect the Free Press.” According to...

Diversity in Non-violent Direct Action: The March for Black Lives by Max Mapes @ Skidmore College

Mar 30, 2018 | Skidmore College

Boston's March for Our Lives The year is 2018. The day: March 24. 50,000-100,000 people are lined up in front of Madison Park High School, Boston, MA. "Youth" are asked to walk in the front,...

Why Polish judicial reforms go too far by Luke Shapiro @ Columbia University

Mar 30, 2018 | Columbia University

The ruling Law and Justice party (PiS) passed a series of controversial measures to overhaul the country’s judiciary late last year. In response, the European Commission (EC) took the unprecedented...

“For Students and Supporters Across the US, Prayers Are No Longer Enough” by Anne Pfeifenberger @ Skidmore College

Mar 30, 2018 | Skidmore College

Students have taken to the streets in the largest showing of a student led movement since the Anti-War Movement protesting U.S. involvement in Vietnam. On March 24, students, teachers, and...

5 reasons to lower the voting age by Yanebi Blanco @Skidmore College

Mar 30, 2018 | Skidmore College

Last Saturday, March 24, 2018, I experienced first hand what I am convinced will be a defining event in United States history: the 'March for our lives' rally in Washington DC. As I was standing...