On Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021, author and historian of Soviet Communism Anne Applebaum joined Hoover Institute democracy expert Larry Diamond for a conversation on democracy and authoritarianism.
- Larry began by asking Anne about her latest book, “Twilight of Democracy: The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism.” The book begins with a New Year’s Eve Party in Poland 20 years ago and chronicles how half the attendees at the party no longer speak to or associate with the other half. This division was sown not by personal issues, but by political.
- Anne then delved into her own personal career disappointments over that same span of time and how her disenchantment paralleled the political setbacks taking place in Poland and around the world.
- Poland, according to Anne was objectively a success story at the time of the pivotal holiday party–economically growing and experiencing improved standard of living. However, cultural issues emerged that were leveraged to gain political power–issues such as abortion, LGBTQ rights and feminism.
- The hard right turn of Poland was engineered by the conservative party which actually represents a minority of the population. Similar to the American GOP, this party packs the courts with loyal, conservation justices, gerrymanders electoral districts, and engages in voter suppression to skew the electoral process in their favor, which results in an uneven political playing field.
- Larry asked why this was happening now and why the retreat from democracy was such a widespread phenomenon to which Anne provided a layered response. First, Anne pointed out that democracy builds in waves; with each wave there is a backlash. She surmised that we are experiencing backlash to the third wave of democratic expansion. However, what makes this point in history unique is the revolutionary way in which we communicate.
- Elaborating on the impact of communication, Anne explained that news and information about the world are chaotic and cacophonous. People are overwhelmed and seeking simple, straightforward messages. To illustrate this point she shared the example of the Brexit campaign–“Take Back Control.” This was an alluring message to people who felt they had little control in the world.
- The people attracted to this simplistic messaging are not the very poor. Anne rejected the notion that there was an economic explanation. It is the glut of information that explains in part the appeal of conspiracy theories.
- Anne diverged a moment to provide another vivid example–the creation of the printing press which led to increased literacy and eventually the Reformation as people challenged the Catholic Church’s monopoly on information.
- Larry acknowledged the emotional appeal of conspiracy theories is found in their simplicity. As a result, given the right conditions any society could turn against democracy. Is it possible, he wondered, to immunize a society against the lure of authoritarianism?
- Anne succinctly responded, “No.” We must acknowledge that democracies rise and fall and there is no specific action to take that will prevent that from happening. However, it was her hope that the last few years will serve as a warning and a wake-up call.
- The final messages from Larry and Anne were both optimistic and prescriptive–take nothing for granted and prepare to be involved more than you thought you had to.
