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Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the...
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Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?

A special issue of Social Sciences (ISSN 2076-0760). This special issue belongs to the section "Contemporary Politics and Society".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (11 March 2024) | Viewed by 19778

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Athena M. King

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Political Science & Geography, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA 23529, USA
Interests: race and ethnicity; urban politics
Dr. Linda M. Trautman

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Arts and Sciences, Ohio University, Athens, OH 45701, USA
Interests: political science
Dr. Stephanie L. Williams

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Libraries and the Judy Genshaft Honors College, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620, USA
Interests: politics
Dr. Tiffany Willoughby-Herard

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Humanities, University of California, 204 Aldrich Hall, Irvine, CA 92697-1075, USA
Interests: South Africa; poor whites; race in foreign policy; diaspora; comparative racial politics; black political thought; third world feminisms; feminist pedagogy; decolonizing theory; comparative political theory; community and civic engagement; radical thought

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The legacy of the Trump presidency in an era of authoritarian leadership can be characterized by extreme right-wing attacks on the right to privacy; individual autonomy; and the political, social, and economic rights of African Americans and other communities of color, women, immigrants, the poor, and LBGTQ+ individuals and families. Americans are also witnessing hundreds of restrictive laws pass Republican super-majority state legislatures across the nation. These laws contain outright cruel and inhumane policies that are meant to punish those who insist on pursuing their right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness in other states when their home states have legislated that they no longer have the right to individual choice. Due to systemic efforts to eliminate these communities from political discourse, we must grapple with both traditional civil rights, as well as consider the legislative policies and legal decisions that have Americans considering whether the democracy that they believed in is on the verge of elimination.

We invite articles that engage with but are not limited to the following themes:

  • Authoritarianism in state legislators and the impact of Republican super-majority state legislators;
  • Authoritarian practices in the international community of nations;
  • Restrictions on reproductive rights;
  • Extreme policies for social welfare programs;
  • Restriction on activism and freedom of speech;
  • The inability to pass police reform legislation;
  • The Supreme Court’s decisions to overturn past rights;
  • The impact of racism, sexism, and homophobia on healthcare;
  • The impact of Trumpism on election laws and redistricting;
  • The impact of anti-woke legislation on higher education;
  • The impact of extremist policing on immigrants;
  • Authoritarianism in Congress, the Supreme Court, and a possible second Trump term.

Please submit your proposals and any questions to special issue guest editors by 4 December 2023. Notification of acceptance will be provided by 11 December 2023. Final papers are due on 5 February 2024 for peer review.

Please attach your contribution as a Word document and use “Special Edition—NCOBPS 2023 Conference” in your subject line. Include the following in the body of the message. Your name and a short biography, a 200-word abstract, a list of five keywords/subject tags, and preferred e-mail address. If you are affiliated with an institution, please include the name.

Scholarly contributions should be more than 20 pages, inclusive of notes and citations (Chicago).

Dr. Athena M. King
Dr. Linda M. Trautman
Dr. Stephanie L. Williams
Dr. Tiffany Willoughby-Herard
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Social Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • American politics
  • democrary
  • extreme politics
  • civil rights
  • reform

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Published Papers (14 papers)

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12 pages, 419 KiB  
Article
Redistricting and Black Political Mobilization: Implications from the 2018 and 2022 Midterm Elections
by Linda Trautman and Michael A. Smith
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(2), 60; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14020060 - 24 Jan 2025
Viewed by 599
Abstract
This research is an analysis of redistricting between the 2018 and 2022 midterm elections and its consequences regarding Black political mobilization and participation. An examination of redistricting after the 2020 census and its implications on racial mobilization is a defining objective of the [...] Read more.
This research is an analysis of redistricting between the 2018 and 2022 midterm elections and its consequences regarding Black political mobilization and participation. An examination of redistricting after the 2020 census and its implications on racial mobilization is a defining objective of the study. Essentially, the primary aim of the study is to assess the nature of redistricting and gerrymandering on Black voter participation by comparing the 2018 and 2022 midterm elections. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
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29 pages, 575 KiB  
Article
Authoritarianism in the United States: A Death Knell for the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program
by Dorian Brown Crosby
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(2), 57; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14020057 - 22 Jan 2025
Viewed by 762
Abstract
One of the United States’ two dominant political parties resembles global political parties favoring authoritarianism. Such directives are expressed through the transformed Republican party’s authoritarian messaging, policies, and many of its member’s behavior. The devastating impact of an energized U.S. authoritarian political party [...] Read more.
One of the United States’ two dominant political parties resembles global political parties favoring authoritarianism. Such directives are expressed through the transformed Republican party’s authoritarian messaging, policies, and many of its member’s behavior. The devastating impact of an energized U.S. authoritarian political party and the narrow narrative of who is and should be in the United States and a U.S. citizen is a necessary discussion following the U.S. 2024 Presidential election. It is foreseeable that an autocratic leader of the U.S. will be catastrophic for refugees, particularly refugees of color and especially refugees in the U.S. South, as the liberal ideals of democracy that undergird the institutions and policies that support U.S. refugee admissions and resettlement are attacked. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
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11 pages, 177 KiB  
Article
The Response to Asymmetrical Violence in Black Space
by Stephanie D. Jones
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(1), 33; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14010033 - 13 Jan 2025
Viewed by 433
Abstract
Oakland, California has been identified as a Black city since the early days of the Great Migration. Migrants from the South brought their labor, families, and most importantly, a vision for the future of Black communities. Alongside the influx of domestic Black folks [...] Read more.
Oakland, California has been identified as a Black city since the early days of the Great Migration. Migrants from the South brought their labor, families, and most importantly, a vision for the future of Black communities. Alongside the influx of domestic Black folks moving into the city has been a steady stream of Black immigrants who help to push the boundaries for how Blackness is understood in Oakland. Increased anti-immigrant sentiments have added to this violence, putting undocumented immigrants at risk of suffering the abuses of landlords. In this article, I uplift the voices of Oakland community members that demonstrate the tragedies of dispossession as they tell their own geographic stories. These collective stories demonstrate the markers of dispossession on different levels as the sociospatial dynamics of Oakland are being (re)imagined. Oakland has now become one more example of the threat to Black spaces in the U.S. and gives us a roadmap for how these spaces will be reimagined under asymmetrical violence. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
24 pages, 333 KiB  
Article
Racial Authoritarian Preemption and the Politics of Tennessee
by Sekou Franklin
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(1), 3; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14010003 - 25 Dec 2024
Viewed by 896
Abstract
Racial authoritarian preemption occurs when state governments overturn, override, and alter the governing power of racially diverse municipalities. Using Tennessee as a case study, this article looks at the convergence of race, authoritarian governance, and state preemption. Three components of racial authoritarian preemption [...] Read more.
Racial authoritarian preemption occurs when state governments overturn, override, and alter the governing power of racially diverse municipalities. Using Tennessee as a case study, this article looks at the convergence of race, authoritarian governance, and state preemption. Three components of racial authoritarian preemption are examined: anti-federal nullification, administrative fiefdoms, and municipal containment. I focus on the period of 2010–2024, when the Tennessee legislature was captured by conservative Republicans, who then used preemption to revoke locally based civil rights, racial equity initiatives, and redistributive measures championed by minoritized communities. In examining preemption, this article draws from primary and secondary sources, including legislative records and the General Social Survey administered by the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center. The article demonstrates that preemption has been weaponized in the twenty-first century to augment the power of far-right state officials and to disempower cities and municipalities that are racially diverse or dominated by Black-led and multi-racial governing institutions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
25 pages, 1169 KiB  
Article
Navigating Heir Disputes over the New American South: Confederate Memorials and Media Framing of Black Mayoral Leadership Against Symbols of White Authoritarianism
by Tyson King-Meadows, Vishakha Agarwal and Priscilla Nakandi Nalubula
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(11), 594; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13110594 - 1 Nov 2024
Viewed by 877
Abstract
Contrary to what other mayors had done to deal with calls to remove Confederate monuments in their cities, the first Black woman mayor of Charlotte, North Carolina appointed a 2020 commission to evaluate and make recommendations for dealing with the monument controversy. As [...] Read more.
Contrary to what other mayors had done to deal with calls to remove Confederate monuments in their cities, the first Black woman mayor of Charlotte, North Carolina appointed a 2020 commission to evaluate and make recommendations for dealing with the monument controversy. As the state’s largest city and “international gateway” to the New South, Charlotte had long wrestled with tensions over cultural memory. Utilizing a mixed methods “embedded design” case study approach, this article examines quantitative and qualitative data, including an analysis of newspaper articles from The Charlotte Observer and The Raleigh News & Observer, to ascertain public reaction to the commission. Results show that media accounts often framed the city’s monument controversy as reflecting the locale’s new sociodemographic reality, a euphemism for lingering conflicts in the jurisdiction over cultural memory, heritage claims, electoral representation, race, and monumentality. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
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24 pages, 1036 KiB  
Article
A Democratic Dilemma: Racial Attitudes, Authoritarianism, and Whites’ Evaluation of Minority Legislators
by Emmitt Y. Riley III and Clarissa Peterson
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(11), 585; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13110585 - 29 Oct 2024
Viewed by 1812
Abstract
The United States prides itself on its immigrant heritage and diversity, yet historically, minority advancements have faced opposition and violence. Little scholarship exists on how whites evaluate minority representation when represented by a minority in a legislative chamber. Prior research suggests that diversity [...] Read more.
The United States prides itself on its immigrant heritage and diversity, yet historically, minority advancements have faced opposition and violence. Little scholarship exists on how whites evaluate minority representation when represented by a minority in a legislative chamber. Prior research suggests that diversity may trigger negative racial and authoritarian attitudes among whites. Given recent political events in the United States and increases in the number of racial minorities running for and winning political office, we investigate white responses to minority representation in the United States Congress. Using the 2022 CES data, we examine how racial and authoritarian attitudes predict whites’ evaluations of Minority House Members. We expand beyond the Black and white binary to include whites’ evaluations of Hispanic legislators and broaden the study of racial attitudes beyond the Racial Resentment index. Our findings demonstrate that whites’ evaluations of minority legislators are linked to racial attitudes and endorsements of policy-based authoritarianism, varying by the representative’s race. White respondents who are in districts that are not represented by a Black or Hispanic legislator exemplify higher levels of racial resentment, disagree that whites have advantages, and agree that racial problems are rare. They also support more authoritarian policies than in districts represented by a Black Representative. White respondents’ approval of minority legislators relies on authoritarian policies and racial attitudes when the member of Congress is Black or Hispanic. In these districts, white respondents who disapprove of their Congressmember have more racial resentment, disagree that whites have advantages, and support more authoritarian policies than white respondents who approve of their Congressmember. This research provides insights into the complexities of minority political representation and its connection to policy-based authoritarianism, as well as its implications for American democracy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
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12 pages, 240 KiB  
Article
A Return to Black Codes: How the Dobbs Decision Debilitated the 14th Amendment
by Timothy Elijah Lewis
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(10), 539; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13100539 - 11 Oct 2024
Viewed by 988
Abstract
Substantive due process, drawn from the 14th Amendment, has been a consistent judicial doctrine for establishing and protecting the rights and liberties of Black citizens in the face of systemic racism. This prompts a question for political consideration and investigation: if the 14th [...] Read more.
Substantive due process, drawn from the 14th Amendment, has been a consistent judicial doctrine for establishing and protecting the rights and liberties of Black citizens in the face of systemic racism. This prompts a question for political consideration and investigation: if the 14th Amendment is a constitutional equilibrium for rights Black citizens would otherwise not enjoy, could the rescission of a right decided and sustained by the 14th Amendment that is not racially explicit have negative racial implications for Black Americans? This study answers this question through an atheoretical case study on the ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade. This study finds that the ruling in Dobbs weakened the 14th Amendment by allowing parameters to be placed on substantive due process. Though the question before the Court was the constitutionality of Mississippi’s abortion law, the implications of weakening the 14th Amendment are that it allows for the legal and cultural revitalization of Black exclusion that existed under the Black Codes, which has already come to fruition in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and the end of affirmative action. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
15 pages, 650 KiB  
Article
White by Force and the Racialized State of Exception
by Vincent Jungkunz
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(10), 518; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13100518 - 29 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1066
Abstract
White identity is forged through violence. The moment that whites aspired to be white, they set themselves up for immediate, inevitable failure: they try to inhabit an identity of superiority that cannot exist, and this sets them into a perpetual identity crisis, an [...] Read more.
White identity is forged through violence. The moment that whites aspired to be white, they set themselves up for immediate, inevitable failure: they try to inhabit an identity of superiority that cannot exist, and this sets them into a perpetual identity crisis, an existential emergency that threatens who they are and who they think they want to be. The ensuing identity formation—white by force—comprises an entire set of strategies, tactics, institutions, and structures meant to prop up an inherently failure-based identity and to do so through brutality, resentment, anger, contrived fear, and murder. Such an identity impacts everyone, including white people themselves, in devastating ways. In what following article, I will put forward a theoretical model called “White by Force and the Racialized State of Exception”, conceptualizing key aspects of this model to provide an emerging vocabulary for studying, discussing, and dismantling white identity, violence, authoritarianism, racism, and the existential crises that we are all facing. Our discourse around race and racism, since the Civil Rights Era, needs new language from which to diagnose an inherently violent identity formation that ultimately benefits no one, especially not people of color or white people from lower socioeconomic strata. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
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12 pages, 239 KiB  
Article
Black Lives in Limbo: Liberian Refugees, Migrant Justice, and the Narration of Antiblack U.S. Border Politics
by Yatta Kiazolu
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(9), 495; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13090495 - 18 Sep 2024
Viewed by 928
Abstract
The Trump administration’s attacks on immigrant communities, especially undocumented people, produced major policy reversals on temporary humanitarian relief programs, such as the termination of Deferred Enforced Departure (DED). While these policies have had wide-reaching impacts across communities of color, within the broader immigration [...] Read more.
The Trump administration’s attacks on immigrant communities, especially undocumented people, produced major policy reversals on temporary humanitarian relief programs, such as the termination of Deferred Enforced Departure (DED). While these policies have had wide-reaching impacts across communities of color, within the broader immigration debate, the experiences of Black migrants have often been overlooked. This paper asks the following questions: How did extremist policies impact Black migrants under the Trump administration? What vulnerabilities did these policies produce or exacerbate? What do these efforts tell us about the “turn” toward authoritarianism in U.S. politics? Applying antiblackness as a theoretical framework, this paper conducts a content analysis of media outlets to examine the impact of extremist policies on Liberian DED beneficiaries. The ramifications of these policies intensified pre-existing antiblack dynamics of belonging and exclusion within the state by reinforcing racial hierarchies, producing social exclusion and vulnerability to state violence, and maintaining constrained access to citizenship. In assessing the many ways that antiblack racism manifests for citizens and non-citizens alike, we can extend our understanding of migrant justice, racial justice, and anti-imperialism as interdependent struggles in the face of rising authoritarianism. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
14 pages, 306 KiB  
Article
Beatriz Nascimento and the Erotics of the Quilombo in Times of Peril
by Katherine Cosby
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(9), 492; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13090492 - 17 Sep 2024
Viewed by 969
Abstract
In October 2018, the election of an extreme right-wing politician as president of Brazil laid bare the histories of antidemocratic practices that guided the policies and rhetoric of the newly elected government. Black, poor, Indigenous, Northeastern, and LGBTQIA+ people were positioned as threats [...] Read more.
In October 2018, the election of an extreme right-wing politician as president of Brazil laid bare the histories of antidemocratic practices that guided the policies and rhetoric of the newly elected government. Black, poor, Indigenous, Northeastern, and LGBTQIA+ people were positioned as threats to the stability of the nuclear family and public safety that the government claimed it would protect. The subsequent COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 also put into stark view the antidemocratic practices and the blatant disregard for life in Brazil, which was particularly acute for people who had been marked as a threat. “Beatriz Nascimento and the Erotics of the Quilombo in Times of Peril” revisits the work of Beatriz Nascimento, a Black Brazilian thinker and scholar who lived through the repressive and antidemocratic period of the military dictatorship (1964–1985). Nascimento’s work offers perspective to the current extreme right-wing project and underscores the significance of Black scholars’ interventions when the lives of marginalized people are at stake. Specifically, her concept of the quilombo (maroon communities) uncovers the histories, relations of power, and the possibilities of social relations for Brazilians living in precarity that antidemocratic governments have attempted to diminish and erase. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
14 pages, 267 KiB  
Article
Unmasking the Authoritarian Mob Boss: A Critical Analysis of Donald Trump’s Political Leadership
by Najja K. Baptist and Kenneth A. Clark
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(8), 397; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13080397 - 28 Jul 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 5197
Abstract
This article comprehensively examines Donald Trump’s political leadership, arguing that his tenure as the 45th President of the United States exhibited characteristics commonly associated with authoritarian mob bosses. Drawing upon various empirical evidence and theoretical political science frameworks, the study sheds light on [...] Read more.
This article comprehensively examines Donald Trump’s political leadership, arguing that his tenure as the 45th President of the United States exhibited characteristics commonly associated with authoritarian mob bosses. Drawing upon various empirical evidence and theoretical political science frameworks, the study sheds light on the underlying dynamics that shaped Trump’s leadership style and its implications for democratic governance. The analysis begins by contextualizing Trump’s rise to power within the erosion of democratic norms. It explores how his rhetoric, characterized by demagoguery and the demonization of opponents, mirrors the tactics employed by mob bosses to consolidate their power and suppress dissent. Moreover, the study uncovers the striking similarities between Trump’s administration management and the hierarchical structures of organized crime, highlighting his reliance on loyalty, personal connections, and a disregard for institutional checks and balances. Furthermore, this research delves into Trump’s autocratic tendencies, as evidenced by his disdain for the free press, attacks on the judiciary, and attempts to undermine the integrity of democratic processes. It reveals how these actions align with the strategies employed by authoritarian leaders to silence opposition and perpetuate their dominance. By examining Trump’s presidency through process tracing, this study contributes to our understanding of the complex relationship between authoritarianism and the erosion of democratic institutions. The findings underscore the urgent need for continued scholarly and public scrutiny of leaders who exhibit traits akin to authoritarian mob bosses to safeguard the principles of democratic governance and protect the integrity of liberal democracies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
15 pages, 298 KiB  
Article
The Politics of Problem Definition: Abortion Policy in Republican-Controlled Louisiana
by Clare Daniel, Anna Mahoney and Grace Riley
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(8), 387; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13080387 - 25 Jul 2024
Viewed by 2090
Abstract
Following the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, Republican-controlled legislatures across the U.S. initiated draconian abortion restrictions. In order to appeal to anti-abortion policymakers, advocates across the country have strategically separated “maternal and child health” (MCH) issues, such as increased insurance coverage [...] Read more.
Following the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, Republican-controlled legislatures across the U.S. initiated draconian abortion restrictions. In order to appeal to anti-abortion policymakers, advocates across the country have strategically separated “maternal and child health” (MCH) issues, such as increased insurance coverage for midwifery and doula care, from issues often labeled as “reproductive rights,” such as access to sex education, birth control, and abortion. Advocates point out this strategic separation has likely contributed overall to the downfall of abortion rights. In this paper, we analyze legislative discourse to understand the legislative challenges advocates face, the strategic separations and allyships they employ, and the implications for other states and reproductive health more broadly. We find that legislators legitimate the same scientific evidence in some contexts while not in others in order to hold onto rhetorical purity within the abortion debate. In their attempts to parse the ideal abortion seeker, conservative legislators create legal ambiguities with serious consequences for healthcare. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
13 pages, 305 KiB  
Article
“I Thought I Was Going to Die like Him”: Racial Authoritarianism and the Afterlife of George Floyd in the United States and Brazil
by Jaimee A. Swift
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(6), 299; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13060299 - 31 May 2024
Viewed by 937
Abstract
This paper offers a brief yet comprehensive comparative analysis of historical and contemporary racial authoritarian violence in the United States and Brazil. Utilizing Black feminist historian and literary scholar Saidiya Hartman’s theorization of the “afterlife of slavery” and Michael Dawson’s linked fate, I [...] Read more.
This paper offers a brief yet comprehensive comparative analysis of historical and contemporary racial authoritarian violence in the United States and Brazil. Utilizing Black feminist historian and literary scholar Saidiya Hartman’s theorization of the “afterlife of slavery” and Michael Dawson’s linked fate, I examine how the processes of racialization and the racial logics of subordination have and continue to shape the contours of Black life in the United States and in Brazil. Moreover, in this work, I interrogate the afterlife of George Floyd and the afterlives of Black Brazilian victims and survivors of racial authoritarian violence; the political, transnational, and symbolic impacts of Floyd’s death; and Diasporic understandings of linked fate on racial authoritarian violence between Black communities in the United States and in Brazil. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)

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19 pages, 303 KiB  
Essay
The Last Democratic Election
by Albert L. Samuels
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(11), 588; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13110588 - 29 Oct 2024
Viewed by 770
Abstract
Despite leading a violent insurrection to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, dozens of pending felony counts against him, and massive civil fines leveled against him, Donald Trump is poised to not only be the Republican presidential nominee in 2024; but [...] Read more.
Despite leading a violent insurrection to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, dozens of pending felony counts against him, and massive civil fines leveled against him, Donald Trump is poised to not only be the Republican presidential nominee in 2024; but rather, he stands a very plausible chance of being re-elected. This is true, despite the increasingly authoritarian tone of his rhetoric of late and concrete plans that he and those allied with him have openly espoused that, if implemented, will fundamentally dismember the tenets of American democracy. Yet, many Americans appear to be “sleepwalking toward dictatorship”. This essay argues that Donald Trump represents a singularly unique, existential threat to American democracy and outlines specifically how a second Trump administration will destroy American democracy as we have previously known it. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from 54th NCOBPS Annual Conference: Democracy on the Brink: Are We Headed into an Era of Authoritarianism?)
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