Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Other democracies have managed to pull back from nativist political rhetoric. It’s past time for the United States to do the same.
Nativism is on the rise in the United States. It threatens to relegate some citizens to second-class status and degrades U.S. democracy. But the similar experiences of other established democracies show that much can be done to fight it.
Given the success the United States has had with supporting democracy around the world, why does it seem incapable of applying those lessons at home?
Why divisions have deepened and what can be done to heal them.
Ideas, experiences, and lessons from other countries are not panaceas but, if properly researched, disseminated, and discussed, they can magnify the reform moment in the United States.
The U.S. political system is indeed beset by a high degree of polarization and a low sense of common purpose. Should we blame democracy itself, or should we blame ourselves for the pathologies of our own politics?
With global democracy facing serious doubts about its basic health and longevity, comparative studies of safeguards and threats to democracy are multiplying.
In the face of the decline of democracy in the United States, it is beneficial to look toward other democracies which declined and recovered. This analysis reveals that often recovery takes decades, can remain incomplete, and that it requires the dedication of individuals committed to renewal.
The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace hosted a Rising Democracies Network workshop on polarization.
Global politics are coming to be dominated by identity rather than ideology.