A Crisis in Democracy? Lessons from the Past and Present (ONLINE)
OSHR 6108This set of 4 lectures examines one of the central concerns of many Americans today: are we living through a crisis in our basic democratic system of government? We will be exploring this question through two historical cases and an examination of contemporary developments here in the 21st century. We will examine the origins of the world’s first democracy in Athens in the 5th century BCE and the reasons for its decline. We will then examine the rise and fall of the democratic government of Weimar Germany between 1918 and 1933. We will also give close attention to the rise of “illiberal democracy” since 1991 and how most democracies today are experiencing flirtations with authoritarianism, neo-fascism, and other severe challenges to the essential checks and balances of a democratic state.
Jared Day, PhD, taught American history at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh for sixteen years. His areas of specialization are U.S. and European political, urban, and cultural history, as well as Pittsburgh history, African-American history, and World history from the 15th century to the present. He lectures regularly at the University of Pittsburgh’s OSHER Academy for Life-Long Learning on a broad range of historical and contemporary topics. He currently lives in Windham, CT.
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