Amid global political turmoil, democracy is in crisis. Across the world, people are less satisfied with their democracies than ever before, and some have embraced autocratic leaders who threaten the existence of democratic institutions. These leaders prey on people’s despair, stoke divisions of class and race, and appeal to nativism in order to cement their power. They sabotage elections and undercut democratic norms. They stifle dissent through state-controlled media mouthpieces that present them as omniscient, powerful, and committed to national aggrandizement. They seek to replace democracy with an authoritarian model that offers a false return to the past.
This era of major crises calls for a revision of our analytical frameworks for explaining trends both towards and away from democracy. In particular, the three most pressing challenges of our time—climate change, pandemic threats, and geopolitical tensions—are changing the factors that drive and impede democracy. They have also intensified the risks of democracy and given oxygen to authoritarianism, but they have also fueled new democratic commitments and potential.
To prevent a downward spiral into dysfunction, we must move beyond focusing on immediate crises and take a longer view of possible trajectories for democracy. This means distinguishing what is essential from what is contingent, and identifying the ways in which we can change the world to make democracy more enduring. To help with this effort, the Centre has prepared three book lists that highlight outstanding publications on the nature of democracy and its current crisis.