The Rise and Fall of Democracy: Lessons From the Past for Today
Tuesday, December 10, 2019 6:15 pm – 7:45 pm EST/GMT-5Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Juristische Fakultät, Unter den Linden 9, 10117 Berlin, Raum 213
A talk by Daniel Ziblatt (Department of Government, Harvard University; Axel Springer Fellow, American Academy in Berlin)
How do democracies form and what makes them die? Daniel Ziblatt summarizes findings from his comparative historical analysis of modern political democracy in Europe from its modest beginnings in 1830s United Kingdom to Adolf Hitler's 1933 seizure of power in Weimar Germany. He argues the barriers to creating inclusive political rule are not overcome on unstoppable tides of socioeconomic change nor via triumph of heroic middle classes and working class rebellion armed with notions of popular sovereignty. Instead, political democracy’s fate surprisingly hinges on how conservative political parties—the historical defenders of power, wealth, and privilege--recast themselves in the face of modern politics. The talk concludes by reflecting on the implications of this history for today.
Part of the Lecture Series on Popular Sovereignty organized by Bard College Berlin and the Law and Society Institute at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin with the support of the American Social Science Research Council
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Date & time: Tuesday, December 10, 2019, from 6:15pm
Venue: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
Juristische Fakultät, Unter den Linden 9, 10117 Berlin, Raum 213
Admission free
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