America’s Founding Fathers created a liberal, democratic, representative form of government that replaced the traditional authoritarian governing styles of Europe. This American experiment in governance has lasted well over two centuries. Since the end of WWII, the American form of democracy has spread and thrived in many other parts of the world, including North America, South America, Western Europe, Australia, and parts of Asia.
These democracies espouse free and transparent elections, governments responsive to the electorate, the importance of human rights, a free and independent press, protection of Constitutionally guaranteed individual freedoms, an independent and impartial judiciary, and the rule of law. These nations have followed America’s example of a liberal, free democracy.
It appears that dusk is beginning to descend on the idea of liberal democracies in some parts of the world. Hungary, Poland, and Brazil are recent examples of the rise of Illiberal democracy. If Donald Trump, Steve Bannon, Tucker Carlson and their cohorts have their way, the United States will follow their lead.
The leaders of illiberal democracies are only too willing to suppress the rights of individuals, and eliminate free and fair elections, an independent judiciary, and the rule of law. The mission of these illiberal democracies is to forcefully restore traditional Christian family values on everyone at the expense of its non-heterosexual and non-Christian citizens; close their borders to non-whites and non-Christians; gain control of the judiciary; and transform the free and independent press into a propaganda machine for the government. They sound an awful lot like the MAGA movement in America.
The upcoming mid-term election will be a giant stride in one direction or another. Will America remain true to its democratic ideals? Or will America choose to follow countries like Hungary, Poland, and Brazil into the world of illiberal democracies? From illiberal democracies, it is a small step toward theocracy, fascism, and authoritarian rule. People who make the effort to vote will determine the direction of our nation.
