Democracy and Institutions

As an Australian currently living in the US, it was Friday morning by the time I woke up to news of the attacks that had occurred in Christchurch, New Zealand two weeks ago. News from our region feels rare here, and the deep tragedy of the event so close to my home struck me. Since […]

In 2014, Congressman Ed Chau climbed onto a podium in front of hundreds of Chinese American protestors and democratic advocates. Facing signs that read “Ed Chau must represent his voters, not his party,” he declared he would not support SCA5, proposed legislation to overturn California’s race-blind admission policies at public universities. In doing so, Congressman […]

In September 2008, I was a young man who had just finished a bachelor’s degree in economics and was hoping to serve my country as an official in the Nicaraguan public sector, by then governed by an administration that had embarked on a process that would culminate in the dismantling of the democratic institutions of […]

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump ran under the slogan “Make America Great Again”. Although the first three words of the slogan were uncontroversial, the last one – “Again” – led many observers to wonder what bygone era Trump was referencing. His harshest critics claimed that he was referring to a time when racism […]

As violence in Mexico escalates, local police in Mexico lack the necessary means to fulfill their duties. It’s named after the holy patroness of Mexico, the Virgin of Guadalupe, but the town of Guadalupe in the state of Chihuahua is far from blessed. In 2008, the town made headlines when its police force consisted of […]

Democrats should ditch commit-to-vote (CTV) pledges for vote tripling pledges.  Instead of asking Democrats to commit to vote, campaigns should ask them to pledge to get three friends to vote. Relative to commit-to-vote (CTV) pledges, new evidence suggests voters like ‘vote tripling’ pledges more and that these pledges more effectively increase voter turnout. Last year, […]

In 2000, during a presidential debate, then-candidate George W. Bush mispronounced the internet as “internets.” Four years later, he repeated this error in a debate with John Kerry (“I hear there’s rumors on the, uh, internets that we’re going to have a draft.”). This clearly was no mere mistake. And the internets responded—making this Bushism […]

In this week’s podcast, we discuss the attempted resignation of Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif and the growing protests in Algeria against President Bouteflika’s proposed fifth term. In Iran, Zarif announced his resignation in a February 25th Instagram post, but President Rouhani insists that Zarif keep his job after widespread support for the Foreign Minister’s […]

Netanyahu is attempting to head off the Gantz-Lapid challenge before it can gain too much momentum. The announcement of his indictment on corruption charges further destabilizes Israel’s turbulent politics ahead of April elections.

BY DENNIS FUNES “Students like YOU end up working rather than going to college.” As a young male of color at a middle school in the Los Angeles School District, a teacher had already predicted my future, or so he thought. Fortunately, I had positive role models, such as my father and my Algebra teacher, […]

This week, Egypt’s parliament approves a motion to amend the country’s constitution. The proposed amendments would keep the current President, General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, in power until 2034. In Libya, Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Khalifa Hifter continues operation to take territory in the country’s southwest, including al-Sharara oil field. And in Washington, the US […]

In a lecture at the Harvard Kennedy School, Sultan al-Qassemi discusses the role of art in the contemporary politics of the Middle East.