Nationalist Resurgence in America and Around the World

Globally and regionally, trajectories of liberal democracy, open and globalized trade and migration, and cultural and economic policies of integration prevailed as a pattern in the late-twentieth century and the first decade or so of this century. But a return of nationalism has interrupted trends in domestic policies of established democracies like the United States and European Union countries, as well as countries with less stable democracies (such as in India and eastern Europe) and also authoritarian states like Russia and China, that had been trending towards cosmopolitan liberal economics and, to an extent, politics. This course examines how the return of nationalism, an older set of ideas about identity and power related to democracy but disconnected from liberalism, has been a major cause of such turns. We examine the changes wrought by the return of nationalism in democratic and electoral politics in the United States and several European countries, as well as in places like India, Russia, China, and Latin America. Nationalist ideas have transcended prevailing liberal-conservative dichotomies and upended party systems. The final portion of the course examines how nationalism has affected the international system, degrading architectures of post-World War II stability, and catalyzing or exacerbating conflict in places like Ukraine and Israel-Palestine.