Democracy in Question?

In this episode, Shalini Randeria speaks with political theorist Pratap Bhanu Mehta about the global rise of civilizational narratives — from India and China to Russia, Turkey, and parts of the U.S. They explore why governments increasingly invoke ancient civilizational identities, how this shift fuels soft authoritarianism, and what it reveals about the deeper crisis of liberal democracy. They also discuss how civilizational thinking erodes the historicity of the modern nationstate, replaces democratic negotiation with pregiven identity, and licenses new forms of exclusion and political violence. Mehta contrasts today’s nostalgic, essentialist civilizational claims with earlier Indian thinkers like Gandhi and Tagore, whose visions were futureoriented and emancipatory. A wideranging conversation on democracy, identity, and the dangerous seductions of civilizational politics.

In this episode of Democracy in Question, host Shalini Randeria speaks with Aishwary Kumar, Professor of History of Political Thought and Institutions at Cal Polyoma California, and director of its Democracy Institute, about his concept of “neo-democracy,” a mutation of liberal democracy defined by the return and acceptance of extreme inequality, the moralization of punishment, and organized cruelty carried out through law rather than outside it. Kumar links neo-democracy to neoliberalism and argues that majoritarian indifference enables legislative abandonment of vulnerable groups, the paramilitarization of violence, and a “jurisprudence of neglect” in which increasingly partisan courts recognize harm yet refuse redress, widening the gap between legality and justice. Tracing democracy’s global genealogy through anti-colonial struggles, he identifies the refugee as the key subject of this condition and calls for “moral institutionalism,” urging critical engagement with institutions rather than abandoning them.

This episode explores how Hungary’s illiberal, soft authoritarian regime and its controversial gender politics and policies are intertwined. Drawing on Éva Fodor’s analysis of the regime’s distinctive features, it examines its pronatalist and ethnonationalist agenda, as well as what she terms the “carefare” policy. How do attacks on gender – including those targeting academic freedom – connect to the vicious attacks against LGBTQI and trans community in Hungary? In what ways is Hungarian pronatalism premised on the internal exclusion of the marginalized Roma population? Why are conservatives and authoritarians, not only in Hungary, so fearful of what they call “gender ideology”? Tune in to hear Éva Fodor unpack Viktor Orbán’s old and new strategies to secure the regime and advance an ethnonationalist agenda – strategies that have been emulated by the US and other countries.

This episode focuses on Slobodian’s latest book, Hayek’s Bastards, which reveals how some neoliberals forged an alliance with segments of the far right to roll back the progressive achievements of the post WWII era, eroding the very foundations of democracy. Why did the end of the Cold War trigger new fears among them and how did this eventually lead to an illiberal, soft authoritarian turn? What is the epochal significance of framing anti-progressive and anti-egalitarian political ideologies and agendas in the language of socio-biology and economics. How can ideas about the deregulated free market be reconciled with hard border control and ethno-racial arguments against immigration? Tune in to hear Quinn Slobodian explain what the neoliberal justifications of inequality and hierarchy mean for the future of our democracies.

This episode examines the unprecedented attacks on universities under the Trump administration. Why do these assaults go beyond culture-war battles over the humanities and diversity to target the very foundations of scholarship and scientific research? And how are internal pressures – ranging from monetization and vocationalism to the retreat from dissent – weakening universities from within? Tune in to hear why defending the autonomy of higher education is inseparable from defending democracy itself.

This episode explores recent challenges to the ideal of the university as a space for open debate and the plurality of views. What is emerging in various national contexts of higher education across Europe and in the United States? And how is the ideal of the university currently being debated? Listen also to hear what the EU’s rearmament could mean for academic freedom across Europe.

This episode explores the current political organizing stemming from mass student-led protests in Serbia against corruption of the regime. Why are Serbian students suspicious of the political establishment, including all political parties in the opposition? And what are the strategic dilemmas for the future direction of the protests? Listen to hear how accession to the EU could impact Serbia’s ongoing struggle for democratization.

This episode explores the broad implications of the large-scale protests across Turkey in response to President Erdoğan’s repression of political opposition. What is the background to the recent developments that the Turkish regime faces? And what are the dilemmas that have given rise to this political storm? Listen to hear why the current resistance in the streets to authoritarianism is a sign that young people and ordinary citizens are willing to protect democracy.

This episode explores the multiple contradictions of Iranian society today. What are the limits for Iranian cultural producers? And what tactics do they employ to circumvent censorship and social taboos? Tune in for the wide-ranging conversation with insights from cinema and culture to women's protests and demographic concerns.

This episode explores the attack against progressive political agendas in the U.S. How have recent actions rolled back hard-won achievements in the realm of gender equity and racial diversity? And why is class relatively underemphasized in the U.S. when it comes examining voter preferences among women? Listen to hear about how reactionary narratives of patriarchy under threat are unfolding, and why increased welfare measures and childcare support are unlikely to lead to the Right’s desired pronatalist birthrates.

This episode examines the factors which led to Donald Trump's decisive victory in the recent U.S. election. Did the Harris campaign’s insistence on issues of identity, rights, and democracy overshadow people's everyday struggles with economic issues? What role did patriarchal bias and demographics of a shifting landscape of political preferences play in this election? And finally, will the bark of Trump’s campaign promises be worse than the actual bite of the coming presidency?

This episode explores the recent national elections in Austria and the victory of a radical right-wing party. How is this development situated within the EU's broader shift to the right? And what explains the decline of the traditional center-right and the Social Democrats? Listen to hear about the issues that dominated public discourse during the campaign and about the current state of democracy in Austria.

This episode explores the social worlds of various extremist groups and the corrosive effects of radicalization on contemporary democracy. Why is it necessary to observe extremist organizations up close? And how are gender and religion instrumentally deployed? Listen to hear about the unexpected similarities between various extremist groups and how the negative effects on democracy can be countered.