Across the globe, many countries display some version of liberal democracy but then gradually yield to strongman rule. This online lecture series asks how and why this can occur in genuine democracies and about any successful recovery. Four countries will be discussed within this framework: Brazil, Hungary, India, and Turkey. To receive an email with the lecture link, register for the email list on the Winter Lecture Series website.

Winter Lecture Series recordings will be posted on the Unitarian Church of Lincoln’s Winter Lecture Series YouTube channel.

February 18 – Zoltan Barany, Erwin Centennial Professor of Government, University of Texas-Austin. A native of Hungary and with a MA from UNL, he is an internationally recognized expert on civilian-military relations and other key aspects of the struggle for civilian democratic rule. He has personal as well as professional reasons to focus on the leadership of Viktor Orban in Hungary.

February 25 – Ashutosh Varshney, Goldman Professor of International Studies, Watson Institute, Brown University. He also directs the Saxena Center for Contemporary South Asia and is Professor of Political Science. A distinguished scholar with a long list of scholarly publications, he knows well the political record of Narendra Modi in India.

March 3 – Wendy Hunter, Professor of Government, University of Texas-Austin. She is a much decorated expert on Brazilian politics. Her impressive scholarship has led to numerous awards, research grants, and visiting positions. She is fully up to date on the rise and fall of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil.

March 10 – Zehra Arat, Professor of Political Science, University of Connecticut-Storrs. A native of Turkey, she has published many studies on Turkish politics, human rights, and women’s rights. She has followed closely the long rule of Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Turkish Republic.