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Event Series

Democracy and Its Critics Initiative




Over the past decade, democracy has been under siege in Europe and the United States. The disruptions caused by the rise of polarization and radical right forces, triggered by economic instability, demographic shifts, and technological change represent deep challenges to the basic patterns of democratic governance that we have taken for granted for decades. The disruptions bind the transatlantic world together and raise fundamental questions: How should we understand this tumult? What is causing it? What are the responses to it? These questions have given rise to shared and parallel debates about the promise and peril of democracy across Europe and in the United States.

The Democracy and its Critics Initiative was launched by the Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies (CES) to focus on both the history and contemporary shape of democracy in Europe, and provide a platform for events, conferences, and research on these pressing issues.

The first event will launch on September 19 with a keynote address by CES Senior Fellow Michael Ignatieff, who will deliver the inaugural Václav Havel Lecture on Human Rights, Civil Society and Democracy.

Later this year, the Center will also host a series entitled “Questions of Fascism and Democracy,” which will be co-chaired by CES Resident Faculty Peter Gordon & CES Director Daniel Ziblatt. The series will host the following speakers:

  • Federico Marcon (Princeton University)
  • William E. Scheuerman (Indiana University)
  • Michelle Lynn Kahn (University of Richmond)
  • Lenka Bustikova (University of Florida)
  • Federico Finchelstein (The New School for Social Research)

This series is a CES-wide initiative, and we welcome proposals, suggestions, and collaborations from anyone in the CES community. Please contact the Center Directors Daniel Ziblatt and Elaine Papoulias.


Events Calendar

American Swastikas and German Klansmen: Transatlantic White Supremacy from the 1970s to Charlottesville Questions of Fascism and Democracy Lecture Series — American Swastikas and German Klansmen: Transatlantic White Supremacy from the 1970s to Charlottesville
January 28, 2025
4:00pm - 6:00pm
  • Michelle Lynn Kahn – Associate Professor of Modern European History, University of Richmond
  • Chair Peter E. Gordon – Amabel B. James Professor of History, Harvard University; Resident Faculty & Seminar Chair, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University; Faculty Affiliate, Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures; Department of Government; and Department of Philosophy, Harvard University
Against Haste: On the Heuristic Affordances of ‘Fascism’ Questions of Fascism and Democracy Lecture Series — Against Haste: On the Heuristic Affordances of ‘Fascism’
February 6, 2025
4:00pm - 6:00pm
  • Federico Marcon – Professor of East Asian Studies and History; Chair of the East Asian Studies Department, Princeton University
  • Chair Peter E. Gordon – Amabel B. James Professor of History, Harvard University; Resident Faculty & Seminar Chair, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University; Faculty Affiliate, Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures; Department of Government; and Department of Philosophy, Harvard University
The Invention of Cohesion: How Democracy Survives at Scale Seminar on European Development in a Historical Perspective — The Invention of Cohesion: How Democracy Survives at Scale
February 24, 2025
3:00pm - 5:00pm
  • David Stasavage – Carroll and Milton Petrie Professor, Department of Politics, New York University
  • Chair Volha Charnysh – Ford Career Development Associate Professor of Political Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Local Affiliate & Seminar Chair, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Uncivil Society and Polarization in Eastern Europe Questions of Fascism and Democracy Lecture Series — Uncivil Society and Polarization in Eastern Europe
March 5, 2025
4:00pm - 6:00pm
  • Lenka Bustikova – Professor of Political Science, University of Florida
  • Chair Peter E. Gordon – Amabel B. James Professor of History, Harvard University; Resident Faculty & Seminar Chair, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University; Faculty Affiliate, Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures; Department of Government; and Department of Philosophy, Harvard University
The Domestic Politics of International State-building: Evidence from Postwar Japan Seminar on European Development in a Historical Perspective — The Domestic Politics of International State-building: Evidence from Postwar Japan
March 31, 2025
3:00pm - 5:00pm
  • Melissa Lee – Klein Family Presidential Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Pennsylvania; Director of the World House Student Fellows Program, Perry World House, University of Pennsylvania
  • Chair Volha Charnysh – Ford Career Development Associate Professor of Political Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Local Affiliate & Seminar Chair, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
  • Moderated by Daniel Lowery – Ph.D. Student in Government, Harvard University; Graduate Student Affiliate & Seminar Chair, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Resisting Authoritarian Populism: What is to be Done? Questions of Fascism and Democracy Lecture Series — Resisting Authoritarian Populism: What is to be Done?
April 3, 2025
4:00pm - 6:00pm
  • William E. Scheuerman – James H. Rudy Professor of Political Science, Indiana University, Bloomington
  • Chair Peter E. Gordon – Amabel B. James Professor of History, Harvard University; Resident Faculty & Seminar Chair, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University; Faculty Affiliate, Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures; Department of Government; and Department of Philosophy, Harvard University
Europe’s Little Divergence in Agglomeration Economies Seminar on European Development in a Historical Perspective — Europe’s Little Divergence in Agglomeration Economies
April 14, 2025
3:00pm - 5:00pm
  • Gary Cox – William Bennett Munro Professor of Political Science, Stanford University
  • Chair Caterina Chiopris – Academy Scholar, Harvard Academy for International and Area Studies, Harvard University; Seminar Chair, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
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