Democracy Archives - Page 15 of 97

Columnists

How the Constitution Stopped Trump’s Attempted Coup d’État

Federalism saved us

November 24, 2020 • by John Stoehr

The US government “ascertained” Joe Biden’s victory on Monday night. That means the President-Elect can get on with the business of building a new administration. The move came after Emily Murphy, the head of the General Services Administration, found the political cover she needed to authorize his transition team. Donald Trump has ...

How the Constitution Stopped Trump’s Attempted Coup d’État

Democracy

Is the GOP For or Against America?

Ned Staebler is mad as hell

November 19, 2020 • by John Stoehr

My bullhorn is rather small, but I’ll do what I can to amplify Ned Staebler. He gave public input in the open meeting of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers. Two Republican members, William Hartmann and Monica Palmer, voted Tuesday against certifying the votes of Wayne County, citing irregularities in ...

Democracy

The Mood Has Changed

From confrontation to subversion: the evolution of protest culture in Belarus

November 19, 2020 • by Ingo Petz

————— In a few short summer months, Belarus completely rewrote its role in world history. Became a part of it. This is about far more than who has formal sovereignty. It’s about our own style and our own place. Ihar Babkoŭ, 8.30.2020 ————— In an unprecedented and historic act of collective politicization, the Belarusian population has overcome ...

Literature

The Big Cats, Part XI

On bones and bonfires

November 17, 2020 • by Val Vinokur

November bonfires roast / the marrow of the lost...

Democracy

Europe Reacts to the 2020 US Presidential Election

The resilience of American democracy gives us reason to hope

November 12, 2020 • by Valerio Alfonso Bruno and Parsi Vittorio Emanuele

Europeans have long awaited the outcome of the 2020 US presidential election with conflicting feelings of fear and hope. In Berlin, Paris, and Brussels, leaders have hoped that a Biden presidency might spur a renewal of transatlantic relations, while in Warsaw and Budapest, populist executives hoped for a second Trump ...

Europe Reacts to the 2020 US Presidential Election

Democracy

Poland’s Abortion Ban Protests Are a Harbinger of a Wider Social Movement

Channelling the grievances of women and of the LGBTQ community

November 10, 2020 • by Helena Chmielewska-Szlajfer and Roch Dunin-Wąsowicz

The pro-choice protests that started on October 22, 2020 are the beginning of a wider social movement channelling the grievances of women and of the LGBTQ community, as well as other marginalized groups in Poland, write Helena Chmielewska-Szlajfer and Roch Dunin-Wąsowicz. What’s more, the protests are not only taking place ...

Poland’s Abortion Ban Protests Are a Harbinger of a Wider Social Movement

Democracy

Strategies of Protests from Belarus

Dignity, solidarity, and the reclaim of public space

November 9, 2020 • by Karolina Koziura and Aliaksandr Bystryk

Almost three months have elapsed since the elections, but Belarusians haven’t been deterred from protesting peacefully. Every Sunday, hundreds of thousands of people march on the streets of Minsk and other cities across the country. The intensity, longevity, and creativity of the protests surprised everyone, including the Belarusians themselves. Yet, ...

Democracy

The Day After?

We have much work yet to do

November 9, 2020 • by Jeffrey C. Isaac

The votes have been counted, and Joe Biden is now the President-elect. On Saturday night, he gave a Victory Speech, following a speech by his running-mate, Kamala Harris. I have been very cautious, very concerned that Trump might obstruct the electoral process and cling to power. I remain concerned, about the ...

Democracy

The Unfinished Project of Defeating Donald Trump

Reflections on the elections in the United States

November 6, 2020 • by Jeffrey C. Goldfarb

I have voiced my judgment over the past four years, and I have facilitated and organized others’ opinions, reports and analyses of Trumpism and global authoritarian trends here at the Democracy Seminar. Yet, a week ago, I exercised the real power of my vote. It was gratifying. And I didn’t only vote ...

The Unfinished Project of Defeating Donald Trump

Democracy

Will Trump’s Coup Succeed?

How to steal an election in plain view

November 5, 2020 • by Timothy Kuhner

May posterity never forget the first time in history—November 4, 2020—when an American president admitted to a conspiracy to invalidate millions of lawfully cast ballots in order to retain the presidency. Noting that the election had not yet been called in his favor, despite his lead in several key states, Donald ...

Democracy

Measuring the Health of Our Democracy

As Trump spins his conspiracist narrative, Biden prepares to assume the presidency and the GOP holds him at arm’s length

November 5, 2020 • by Heather Cox Richardson

Counting continues in the 2020 presidential race. There is a lot I’d like to say about what this election looks like, but I will wait until it's final. Remember: the fact that polling officials are taking time to count the ballots is a good thing, not a bad one. And ...

Democracy

Confessions of a Poll Worker

When I volunteered to work on Election Day, my melting pot neighborhood taught me about the complexity of Trump’s America

November 5, 2020 • by Mitchell Abidor

It’s not the least of the paradoxes of the Trump era that this wannabe authoritarian did more than any decent man to lead Americans to assume their civic duties. Trump’s attacks on the electoral process led 52,000 New Yorkers to sign up for work at the polls, 18,000 more than in ...