It has become increasingly clear that Americans are uncertain and worried about the future of American democracy.
In this time of question and doubt, Defending Democracy is an effort to spotlight the kinds of attacks Americans have experienced and witnessed and the variety of ways Americans have pushed back against anti-democratic forces in their everyday lives. This could be at school board meetings, parent-teacher meetings, among neighbors and home-owner associations, at election sites, in church or other religious gatherings—or any other setting where political conversation may trigger confrontation and democratic processes may be interrupted.
Our aim is to capture and understand the scale and variety of these encounters, and to create hope for democracy’s future by amplifying the voices of those individuals seeking to sustain democracy within their communities.
The Center for the Study of Religion and Conflict, The Melikian Center: Russian, Eurasian and East European Studies, Narrative Storytelling Initiative and Center for Work and Democracy at Arizona State University seek the submission of personal experiences from people in Arizona and across the United States who have witnessed an attack of some kind, or an effort to defend democracy, in their community.
