Authoritarianism

Authoritarianism is rising around the world — threatening democracy, human rights, and the fundamental dignity of diverse communities. This resource library is a curated collection of articles, essays, tools, and analyses designed to help you...

Why do some political leaders thrive on anti-corruption rhetoric, even when accused of corruption themselves? In her latest Connecting the Dots piece, Míriam Juan-Torres, Head of Research at the Democracy & Belonging Forum, explores how authoritarian...

OBI Director john a. powell and researchers contextualize the current moment our world is experiencing in a 90-minute virtual conversation. They look at what is driving the rise of authoritarianism across the globe, and discuss pathways forward to build a world where everyone belongs and no one is excluded.

As I try to make sense of European and American politics, the image that keeps coming to mind is that of a hydra. In Greek mythology, a hydra is a mythical serpent with multiple heads that grow back when cut off; persistent, multifaceted, and...

The goal of this paper is to provide a primer on key concepts that help us understand the rise, strategies, and tactics of exclusionary, nativist, and populist movements today, and to advance the framework of authoritarian populism as an analytical tool that informs practical efforts to combat these movements, address structural marginality, and advance democracies rooted in belonging.

We are facing a moment in history that requires us to develop new organizing modalities. We have to come together to block the threats we are facing to our democratic values, we need to bridge across differences to foster broad-based movements with...

The first time I heard of the European Common Agrarian Policy ( CAP) I was around ten years old. That–you may think—is probably too tender an age to get into the weeds of one of the most technical policy areas in the European Union. And you would be...

In late 2023, the European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell forecasted that 2024 would be the year of fear. Borrell expressed his concern that Europeans’ fears would lead them to elect the far right en masse. In that respect, he is probably...

The year 2023 has been full of violence. The ongoing killing and injury of tens of thousands of non-combatants and especially of children in Gaza, at the hands of the Israeli military, defies imagination. Russia's war on Ukraine continues unabated...

A few months ago, I managed a focus group exploring attitudes towards climate with young Spanish progressives from urban centers. Whenever I manage focus groups, I like to begin with the question “what are the most important issues facing the country...

In the age of the politics of emotions, the feeling of belonging has a lot to do with individual experiences. Confidence in the future, or the perception of lack of opportunities, can be a determining factor in a citizen’s relationship with their community...

However difficult it is to properly gauge the significance of historical events while still living through them, we can surely already state with confidence that the Covid pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine together constitute a truly seismic and transformative sequence of years for the world.