Democracy is under threat in the United States and elsewhere, leading to widespread concern about human rights, election legitimacy, delivery of essential government services, and increasing violence. This is not hyperbole. Nearly every metric used to measure the strength of democracy concludes that democratic backsliding has occurred in the 21st century. How we understand the source of democratic unraveling and the possible solutions will shape what type of world we live in moving forwards. In this class, we will focus in particular on the urgent question of can democracy be saved and how different institutional arrangements, financial resources, and collective movements shape the field of what is possible.
SYLLABUS HERE: POLS 299_SYLLABUS_FINAL1-1.docx
The course will focus on the questions about what makes democracy unique, what institutional arrangements can facilitate democracy, and how to identify and understand signs of democracy in decline. There is an expansive set of issues that relate to global threats to democratic governance, but this course will focus largely on the development and future of democracy in the United States. The course begins by examining the theoretical foundations of democracy and evolving standards of democratic practice. Next, we will turn our attention to analyzing the central challenges that democratic governance is facing. We then examine several modes for strengthening the formal institutions and intermediary institutions of democracy. The course concludes with a deeper focus on how people, both domestically and globally, have attempted to save democracy.
Throughout the quarter, our goal will be to understand the changing nature of, and changing relationship between, formal/informal institutions and people. As a result, this course will simultaneously pull from different fields such as American political development, law and society, political theory, comparative politics, race and ethnic politics, and history. In our inquiry, traditional sources such as academic books and articles will used alongside investigative reports, podcasts, and first-hand accounts.
A key theme of the course is that democracy must be continually recreated and fought for to survive. Democracy cannot be understood as a pre-existing foundation that weakens through erosion. Democracy, as it existed in the United States, was not the result of a gift that some “founding fathers” bequeathed for future generations. The version of democracy as the US founding was limited, deeply compromised, and unable to resolve the regional divisions that ultimately exploded into Civil War. The subsequent achievement of democracy in the United States has instead been the result of continual collective struggle to reconstruct, rebuild, and advance democratic ideals; struggles often engaged by ordinary people acting collectively in defiance of antidemocratic forces.
In this class, students will learn about the factors that have weakened democracy worldwide. They will also learn about the history of prior struggles for democracy and what they can teach us about how to overcome today’s anti-democratic forces. Understanding the broader trajectory through which democracy has been advanced reveals that democracy is not just about voting in elections. It also about building community and advancing shared values through collective work in neighborhoods, workplaces, and non-government organizations. Assignments for the course encourage students to use a foundational knowledge of democracy’s history and challenges to think creatively about a more democratic future.
All readings/podcasts on the syllabus are required. Readings that are paywalled can be found on the course Canvas page under the ‘Files’ tab. Students are also expected to keep up to date with current political events by reading at least one online news source (e.g., BBC, CNN, The Seattle Times, New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal etc.) each day.
The outline of the course and required readings for the course are below. In order to remain responsive to unfolding events related to the course topics, some readings, particularly in the second half of the course, are not yet finalized. We also may change some of the topical areas listed there in response to current events. Final reading assignments will be announced in advance and readings provided on Canvas. The exam date and due dates for assignments will not change.