Debating Trump's Violence on American Democracy and the Future of Democracy Promotion in the World

 

By Isa Mohammed 

There is no one democracy but democracies. Athens the cradle of classical democracy has its root in Greek culture and civilization. 

From Greece to America, the United Kingdom to Russia, China to France, Germany to Nigeria, and India to Switzerland all are different democracies.

According to Collier and Levitsky (1997), there are over 550 different conceptions of democracy.  These democracies with adjectives were identified to explain the complexity and subtypes of democracy as a darling concept by democrats and dictators. 

 Revisiting the "old debate" on democracy from classical philosophers to contemporary scholars:

1. Plato (375BC): Democracy  is the rule by of the ignorant

2. Aristotle (1325b): Democracy is a mob rule

3. Marx (1848): Democracy is a class rule

4. Lincoln(1858): Democracy is the government of the people, by the people and for the people

5. Gaddafi(1975): Democracy  is a fallacy

6. Dahl: Democracy is the reigning ideology

7. Fukuyama (1992): Democracy is the liberal idea that bring end of ideology by its triumph on other ideologies

8. Schneider (1998): Democracy is the only game in town

9. Carothers (2002): Democracy is in retreat

10 Sen (1999): Democracy is a universal value

11. Schimitter (1991): Democracy is about contingent consent and bounded uncertainty.

The conduct and personality of Trump is a pointer to the fact that ideologies like democracy can be undermine by the human factor of character and personality of leaders. Trump has introduces the new concepts in the study of democracy and power.  "Twitter Diplomacy and Post-truth in politics"

In Africa "Big Man Democracy" and " African Democracy" are very important to the understanding of the challenges of democracy. 

Institutions are very important as well as the political culture. Trump has lost but the greatest lost is for the idea of liberal democracy in America. The 2020 Presidential Election left a divided nation ever before in the history of America since 1776. 

What happen to democracy promotion?. Here we are battling with "Nigeriacracy" ponder over this. Democracy is the worst form of government but it is still the best we know.

Who will promote democracy?

Who will defend democracy?

 Thinking about democracy.