Satanic Politics. Democracy after Liberalism

Lecture series “At the crossroads? On the Crisis of Democracy” in the winter semester 2025/2026

Lecture by Michael Rosen (Harvard University)

Registration is requested: Here…

Am Scheidepunkt? Zur Krise der Demokratie / At the crossroads? On the crisis of democracy

Western democracies are at a crossroads: since the “turning point” proclaimed by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in light of the Russian attack on Ukraine, the term has become a symbol of an era of upheaval. The current political and social situation is perceived in many places as a crisis of democracy – characterized by polarization, the rise of authoritarian movements, geopolitical tensions and the erosion of normative foundations of democratic orders.

The lecture series “At the crossroads? On the Crisis of Democracy” is dedicated to these developments from an international and interdisciplinary perspective. It examines the causes and manifestations of democratic erosion processes as well as possible ways of renewing or defending democratic institutions and principles. The focus is on the internal dynamics of Western democracies as well as global power shifts and the role of international orders.

The lecture series of the Research Centre Normative Orders in the winter semester 2025/2026 takes place as part of the research program “Zeitenwenden. Normative Orders in Transition?” funded by the Commerzbank Endowment Fund of the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft. It is organized by Thomas Biebricher, Rainer Forst, Martin Saar and Greta Wagner.