LARTS 392 — Challenges to American Democracy

3 credits
Fall
Anita Mercier

Prerequisite: LARTS 112 . In recent years we have witnessed unprecedented challenges to the institutions and norms of democracy in the United States. In this course we will investigate convergent sources of systemic stress, including demagoguery, political polarization, media and digital technology, and historically high levels of economic inequality. Does democracy have a future? The answer is yes—but only if we can understand and effectively respond to the forces that threaten to undermine it.