TopicsPosts Tagged ‘Democracy’
Two Potential Upcoming Canadian Secession Referenda and the Broader Issues they Raise
Illustration: Lex Villena Few Americans have taken much notice, given the vast amount of other political news. But two Canadian provinces – Alberta and Quebec – may be holding referendums on secession in the near future. If the votes are held, the secessionists are likely to lose in both cases. But these events are still of interest to students of…Read More
How MoveOn Is Turning the Tide To Win the 2026 Midterms
The problem in 2024 Lots of people sat out the 2024 election. It could even be argued that Vice President Kamala Harris lost the White House solely because 19 million people who voted for Joe Biden for president in 2020 sat out in 2024. Many of these voters were alienated by Democratic leaders who disappointed them and a broken political…Read More
What Ancient Athens Can Teach Us About Fixing Democracy
In ancient Athens, frustrations and disillusionment with the political system may have helped fuel the rise of ostracism—a system that allowed citizens to exile powerful figures seen as threats to the political order. Through the story of Themistocles, this essay explores how early democracy responded to public dissatisfaction and asks whether modern systems can adapt in similarly meaningful ways, without…Read More
50 Years Later: South America’s Operation Condor and Contemporary Transnational Repression
Francesca Lessa— Transnational repression constitutes a “global threat to national sovereignty, security, and human rights,” according to a 2025 report from Freedom House. The term transnational repression describes the tactics that governments employ to persecute political opponents who are living in exile. States have adopted various strategies in this regard; they range from propaganda campaigns, surveillance, the infiltration of agents…Read More
Demosthenes: A Conversation with James Romm
In Demosthenes: Democracy’s Defender, James Romm tells the tragic story of ancient Greece’s last democratic leader. In this Q&A, we talk with the author about his writing process and what today’s world leaders can learn from Demosthenes’ successes and failures. How do you, as a historian, ensure that you objectively cover all aspects of a historical figure, equally portraying both…Read More
Congressional Republicans Want to Shut Down the Government Instead of Keeping Your Healthcare Costs Low
Have you heard the federal government is on the brink of shutting down again? Moments like this can be confusing. But let’s be perfectly clear about what’s happening here: Republicans are so hell-bent on jacking up costs and taking away health care from millions of working people, that they are willing to shut down the government to do so. Millions…Read More
Is There Any Way That Democrats Can Get Back Into Power?
Yes, if Democrats can take back the House in 2026, then we can stop Trump from continuing to strip away Americans’ rights. There are things we can all be doing right now to get Trump out of office. Remember, Democrats need to flip only three seats to flip the House. Just three seats. In his first six months as president,…Read More