The Fragility of American Democracy

From The New Yorker’s archive: a selection of pieces about our delicate political system. View in browser | Update your preferences The Fragility of American Democracy The crisis of American democracy hardly ended with last November’s election. And it has a lengthy history. Not long ago, Jelani Cobb wrote a Daily Comment about the parallels between America’s abiding legacy of racial injustice and its enduring antidemocratic movements. The attacks and campaigns that have disenfranchised Black Americans for centuries weren’t only expressions of racism, he observes, but “a gleeful expression of defiance toward a government that dared try to uphold democracy.” As he notes, there is a clear link between the nation’s racial hypocrisy and its autocratic leanings. This Fourth of July weekend, we’re bringing you a selection of pieces about the fragility of our political system. In “What We Get Wrong About America’s Crisis of Democracy,” Adam Gopnik explores the enduring appeal of authoritarianism. In “People Power,” Jill Lepore considers the evolution of the American experiment in democracy. In “The Republicans’ Wild Assault on Voting Rights in Texas and Arizona,” Sue Halpern reports on new restrictions and the broad attempt to suppress ballot access and undermine the democratic process itself. And, finally, in a remarkable piece of reporting, “Among the Insurrectionists,” Luke Mogelson provides a portrait of the ragtag yet dangerous movement that attacked the Capitol just six months ago: “The sky darkened. At 8 P.M., Congress reconvened and resumed certifying the election. For six hours, Americans had held democracy hostage in the name of patriotism.” —David Remnick From The New Yorker’s Archive Daily Comment What Black History Should Already Have Taught Us About the Fragility of American Democracy The country’s margins have often been the best vantage point from which to survey its weaknesses. By Jelani Cobb | November 5, 2020 Comment What We Get Wrong About America’s Crisis of Democracy The interesting question is not what causes authoritarianism but what has ever suspended it. By Adam Gopnik | January 4 & 11, 2021 Books People Power Revisiting the origins of American democracy. By Jill Lepore | October 24, 2005 A Reporter at Large Among the Insurrectionists The Capitol was breached by Trump supporters who had been declaring, at rally after rally, that they would go to violent lengths to keep the President in power. A chronicle of an attack foretold. By Luke Mogelson | January 25, 2021 Comment The Republicans’ Wild Assault on Voting Rights in Texas and Arizona What began as thinly veiled attempts to keep Democrats from the polls has become a movement to undermine confidence in our democracy itself. By Sue Halpern | June 14, 2021 You’re receiving this e-mail because you signed up for the New Yorker Classics newsletter. Was this e-mail forwarded to you? Sign up. Unsubscribe | Manage your e-mail preferences | Send newsletter feedback | View our Privacy Policy Copyright © Condé Nast 2021. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.