Democratic Backsliding and Academic Freedom II: Case Studies

Session Submission Type: Created Panel

Session Description

The past decade has been characterized by a notable decline in democratic freedoms around the world – not just in third wave democracies, but also in more established ones such as the United States of America. A new wave of populism, mostly on the far-right of the political spectrum, and a proliferation of far-right demagogues in positions of power, sometimes even as heads-of-state, has led to prominent attacks on established institutions of democracy, among them academic freedom.

The two IPSA-sponsored panels address this phenomenon of democratic backsliding and its consequences for academic freedom from a multiplicity of perspectives. The first one, Democratic Backsliding and Academic Freedom I, addresses the issue from a macro perspective, whereas the second panel, Democratic Backsliding and Academic Freedom II, look at different case studies, among them the United States, Hungary, Poland, Turkey, and Brazil.

Sub Unit

• Partner Associations / International Political Science Association

Individual Presentations

• Academic Freedom and Democratic Backsliding in the Contemporary United States - Thomas M. Keck, Syracuse University

• Science, Politics, and the Contestation of Academic Freedom in the Contemporary United States - Janika Spannagel, Freie Universität Berlin

• A Symbiotic Relationship between Academic Freedom and Liberal Democracy: The Case of Higher Education in Turkey - Ayla Gol, York St John University

• Science Attacks and Policy Dismantling in Context of Democratic Backsliding: An Analysis of Brazil during Bolsonaro Government - Michelle Vieira Fernandez, UnB

Chair

• Annika M. Hinze Fordham University

Discussant

• Daniel Stockemer University of Ottawa