One of the things we heard in our listener survey (which there's still time to take, by the way) is that we should have more young people on the show as guests. It was a great suggestion and, after having this conversation, we're so glad to have received it.
Joining us this week is Kyle Hynes, a junior at State College Area High School and a true advocate for democracy. He is the statewide champion in the youth division of the Draw the Lines PA mapping competition and winner of the Future Leader in Social Studies from the Pennsylvania Council for the Social Studies.
Kyle is an expert on the ins and outs of gerrymandering, but he also has interesting perspectives impeachment, political engagement among his peers, and the generational divide in American politics.
We've had a lot of guests tell us that they put hope in Generation Z to solve some of the challenges we face. If Kyle is any indication, that hope is in the right place.
Pennsylvania Council for the Social Studies
One state's fight for fair maps
What can Pennsylvania voters do about gerrymandering?
Generation Z and the future of democracy
Citizenship, patriotism, and democracy in the classroom
I've always been really interested in math. I've also been interested in politics for quite a while, and so I'm really interested in the areas where they intersect, where math and politics come together. I feel like gerrymandering is one of those places. Redistricting is a logistical puzzle and you try to put it together. So I've always thought this is really interesting, and then when I saw that there was a competition, you can draw your own map, see if you can do it better. I was like, "I want to try that."
Our family's really politically engaged, and my political interest kind of sparked during the 2016 primaries, where it seemed almost, especially on the Republican side, just because there were more candidates, it seemed almost like a giant game. It's like the Hunger Games, who can get to the cornucopia first? And it was like, "Is this really how we choose our politicians? Really?" And so that kind of sparked an interest for me, and then it's kind of carried through ever since.
Some of my friends are interested in politics, all have a lower tolerance for politics than I do. But yeah, so sometimes there's the reaction of, "Oh Kyle, just shut up about the damn politics." But often sometimes they are interested in politics and stuff like that.
On the one hand, there's some ambivalence. People think Republicans and Democrats are the same and everyone is corrupt and in it for their own ends. But there's also a bunch of people, I would say a majority even, among kids my own age who actually do care, and who are actually interested in finding solutions to problems. And I feel like to a certain extent it's less tribal, especially among high schoolers and young adults. The tribal mentality really isn't there.
I took a civics class in eighth grade, which was pretty good. And then the only thing after that is the AP government class in 12th grade, so both those classes have certainly played a role. I feel like another big contributor to my civics education, my parents are both really politically minded, civically minded, and they both raised me from an early age to care about this stuff.
I had certainly seen a lot of alternate Pennsylvania congressional maps that people had drawn saying, "Hey, I can do this better than the politicians in Harrisburg." And so I feel like I drew some from a lot of those different maps, and different attitudes towards districting. And I feel like I also kind of pulled on my math background, because I wanted to create as many districts that were competitive, for both sides, as possible, and I feel like at some point that was just a pure puzzle. It was just, how do I cobble the precincts together in such a way that you get as many 50/50 districts as you can?
I wanted to use competitive districts, because in my perfect world, if we had an electoral system of my choice, it would be a proportional representation system, so that everyone could actually have a say in choosing the government. But obviously this competition didn't allow for that, you drew the districts. And so I felt like I wanted to draw a map that gave every single voter as much say as physically possible
Yeah, sometimes. I feel like the youth in any generation are always the least jaded. As people go through life, they often become more and more and more jaded. But I feel like a lot of the issues that have been prevalent in the past, and even today, there is, like I certainly hope that our generation or generations above us can take care of the issues, because somebody's got to. So I feel like on the one hand, it's a little bit of pressure like, "We're going to give it to the youth, see what they can do with it." But on the other hand, I think in the future, our generation will end up taking the reins of power, and I feel like, I hope that we can do good things with them.
I feel like it's tough to answer the question because like a lot of things, even though like almost everything, there are a lot of people in that, a lot of Boomers who agree with what I think, and a lot who don't. And a lot of people who have been doing things to advance what we need to do in a bunch of these different categories, and a bunch who don't.
But I feel like of all of the issues that, I feel like older generations, like the one currently in power now in DC has failed in, and this is not a dispersion on any generation as a whole, but just the part of it that is currently in power, is climate change, because I feel like they've had a long time, and by they, I mean the caucuses in Washington, a long time to deal with this, and it hasn't been dealt with. And so I feel like that's something that's going to end up being passed down to our generation, which we're going to have to deal with.
People are only actually exercising democracy when they're actually making their voices heard. I feel like it goes beyond voting. Sure, the right to vote is a key part of democracy and you can't have democracy without it, but there's the right to meet with your representatives. There's the right to free speech. The right to a free press. And all of these things I feel like are so key to democracy. It's like it is rule of the people, by the people, but it's also rule of the people, rule for the people.
So having a system where you can actually talk about what you want to talk about, you can make your voice heard, you can vote in situation where every single person has the same key right to vote, which is really fundamental, and where you don't have certain people blocking other people's right to vote or right to vote meaningfully.
Hedrick Smith is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of bestselling books The Russians, Who Stole the American Dream? and many others. Over the course of his nearly 60 years in journalism, he's interviewed some of the biggest politicians and power brokers on the national and international stage. Now, his reporter's curiosity has led him to places like Sioux Falls, South Dakota and Hartford, Connecticut to report on efforts to end gerrymandering, remove money from politics, and fight corruption through grassroots organizing.
Smith joins us this week to talk about what he learned from these organizers while filming his latest project, a documentary called The Democracy Rebellion: A Reporter's Notebook with Hedrick Smith that will air on PBS this January. He says that the grassroots are not nearly as polarized as politicians and political insiders, as evidenced by the fact that many of these pro-democracy ballot initiatives passed with large bipartisan majorities.
Smith also reflects on the state of the media today and why grassroots movements can't seem to capture the attention that horse race politics do. It's part of the reason why he's still out there pounding the pavement as a reporter and getting out of his home in Washington, D.C. to meet people doing the hard work of democracy every day.
Hedrick's website, Reclaim the American Dream
One state's fight for fair maps
Winning the "democracy lottery"
The complicated relationship between campaign finance and democracy
This week's episode is a conversation between Michael Berkman, Chris Beem, and Michael Baranowski of The Politics Guys, a podcast that looks at political issues in the news through a bipartisan, academic lens.
Baranowski is an associate professor of political science at Northern Kentucky University. His focus is American political institutions, public policy, and media — which makes him a great match for our own Michael and Chris.
They discuss impeachment from the standpoint of political institutions and the legitimacy of our democracy. Regardless of what happens with the current impeachment inquiry, some of our government's norms and institutions may be irreversibly damaged, while others may develop in response to the Trump administration.
They also touch on the growing epistemic divide we discussed with Nancy Rosenblum and Russell Muirhead in our episode on conspiracies. The Politics Guys is a bipartisan show, but Baranowski increasingly feels like he and his colleagues are talking past each other rather than having meaningful discussions.
Understanding impeachment — from the Federalist Papers to the whistleblower
Checking the President's power
How conspiracies are damaging democracy
The New York City mayoral primary is this week and will be the first one to use ranked-choice voting. This week, we revisit an episode that aired not longer after the city's voters approved RCV via ballot measure in November 2019.
What is ranked-choice voting? How does it work? And, is it more democratic than the single-vote method we’re used to? This week’s guest has answers to all of those questions.
Burt L. Monroe is Liberal Arts Professor Political Science, Social Data Analytics, and Informatics at Penn State and Director of the university’s Center for Social Data Analytics. He says ranked-choice voting is generally a good thing for democracy, but not entirely without problems of its own. We also talk about bullet voting, donkey voting, and other types of voting that have been tried around the world.
As Michael and Chris discuss, ranked-choice voting falls into a category of grassroots organizing around pro-democracy initiatives like gerrymandering and open primaries. These efforts signal a frustration with the status quo and a desire to make the rules of democracy more fair and equitable.
Fairvote, an advocacy group for ranked-choice voting and election reform
How to end democracy's doom loop
One state’s fight for fair maps
We've talked about immigration several times on this show with good reason. The role that people coming to the United States play in our democracy is an important question and something states, cities, and towns across the country will continue to grapple with as demographics shift.
This week's guest offers a historical perspective that sets the stage for the debate about immigrants we hear so often today. A.K. Sandoval-Strauss is director of the Latina/o Studies program at Penn State and author of the new book Barrio America: How Latino Immigrants Saved the American City.
In the book, and in this conversation, he argues that immigrants moved into cities like Dallas and Chicago and revitalized downtowns that were beginning to hollow out because of white flight and discriminatory practices designed to keep African-Americans out. The same thing, he says, is happening again as Latino immigrants move into smaller cities and towns from Hazleton, Pennsylvania to Sioux City, Iowa — bringing economic and cultural vitality to places industry left behind.
We also discuss the role that Latinos played in the Civil Rights movement, and how that ties into their complicated identity during the 1950s and 60s, as well as what the future looks like as the Latino population increases while other ethnic groups decrease.
Barrio America: How Latino Immigrants Saved the American City
A.K.'s op-ed in The Washington Post
Our sponsor: Penn State World Campus
More than 600 million people voted in India's most recent election, but that does not mean all is well with democracy there. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP recently won re-election on a platform based on Hindu nationalism. As we've seen with other countries experiencing democratic erosion, the people and parties coming to power do not value the liberalism that's essential to liberal democracy.
But, as our guest this week argues, what's happening in India is not exactly the same as what we see in places like Hungary and Brazil — or even the United States. Vineeta Yadav is an associate professor of political science and affiliate faculty in the School of International Affairs at Penn State. She studies politics and democracy in India.
Vineeta visited India over the summer and talks about what she saw when Modi and the BJP eliminated Article 370 of the Indian Constitution, which granted special status to the Muslim-majority state. She also discusses India's strong civil society and how it's pushing back against the BJP's illiberal tendencies.
More on Kashmir and Article 370
Viktor Orban's "velvet repression" in Hungary
Brazil's tenuous relationship with democracy
Climate change is perhaps the most pressing issue of our time, but it's so big that it can be difficult to imagine how you as an individual can make an impact — or even know how to talk about it with other people in a meaningful way. This episode offers a few creative suggestions for addressing both of those things.
Our guest is Graham Bullock, associate professor of political science and environmental studies at Davidson College. His work covers everything from public policy to deliberative democracy, and the ways those things interact when it comes to climate and sustainability.
He's used some innovative methods to break out of traditional modes of argument and encourage his students to think differently about climate and citizenship. We hope this episode inspires you to do the same, whether you are a teacher or simply looking to broach difficult topics like climate change with friends, family, or colleagues.
We also talk with Graham about what it means to be a responsible climate citizen and how that manifests itself in everything from buying sustainable products to attending climate rallies.
Michael Mann on climate activism
Peter Buckland on local government and climate change
Forrest Briscoe on corporate action and corporate social responsibility
More on duty-based vs. engaged citizenship
Graham's book- Green Grades: Can Information Save the Earth?
The Responsible Consumers Club
Penn State's Mark Kissling, who joined us last year to talk about civics education, has a new article out on how climate and citizenship are taught in K-12 social studies classrooms.
Last week, we heard from Andrew Sullivan about the challenges facing the future of democracy in the United States and around the world. This week's episode offers a glimpse into what can happen when a country emerges from a political crisis with stronger democratic practices in place.
About 10 years ago, Ireland found itself facing an economic recession, distrust in government, and polarization about how to move forward. Our guests this week, David Farrell of University College Dublin and Jane Suiter of Dublin City University, proposed using deliberative democracy to bring citizens and politicians closer together. The approach worked, and it's garnered attention from other places around the world who want to do the same thing.
Farrell and Suiter are the winners of the McCourtney Institute for Democracy's 2019 Brown Democracy Medal, which recognizes new and innovative work in democracy. We are now seeking nominations for next year's medal; please email democracyinst@psu.edu if you know someone who might be a good fit.Thank you to our sponsor, Penn State World Campus. Learn more about their Master of Professional Studies in the Psychology of Leadership at worldcampus.psu.edu/leadership.
This is one of the most pessimistic episodes we've done, but it's worth hearing. Andrew Sullivan, New York magazine contributing editor, Daily Dish founder, and former editor of The New Republic, is a longtime observer of American politics who does not shy away from controversial opinions. In this episode, we discuss the tension between liberalism and democracy, and how that tension manifests itself around the world.
The way Sullivan sees it, the "us vs. them" rhetoric and attitudes in our culture have gone so far that the moderating values and virtues of liberalism will no longer be able to intervene. We also discuss the relationship between dignity and identity politics, and the parallels between the United States and the United Kingdom.
Thank you to our sponsor, Penn State World Campus. Learn more about their Master of Professional Studies in the Psychology of Leadership at worldcampus.psu.edu/leadership.
If you like what you hear on this show, please take a minute to share it on social media or text it to a friend, family member, or colleague who might enjoy it, too.
His lecture at Penn State on "American Democracy in the Age of Trump"
In about a dozen U.S. states, the only people who can vote in primary elections are those who are registered with a party. Republicans vote in the Republican primary and Democrats vote in the Democratic primary. This leaves out independents, who make up a growing share of the electorate. This week's guest argues that's problem for democracy.
Jeremy Gruber is the Senior Vice President at Open Primaries. He is a lawyer, writer, and internationally recognized public policy advocate who has helped enact more than 60 state, federal and international laws and regulations. He joins us to make the case for why all primaries should be open, and how our democracy will be stronger because of it.
But what happens to the parties in an open primary system? We've talked on the show before about the role they play as gatekeepers in our democracy and revisit some of that discussion in this episode.
ICYMI, we are holding an event at the National Press Club on October 22. It would be great to meet some of our listeners in the area. More information at democracy.psu.edu/dc.
Finally, thank you to our brand new sponsor, Penn State World Campus. Learn more about Penn State's online The Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in Psychology of Leadership degree at worldcampus.psu.edu/leadership.
We are part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.