Hi everyone, welcome back to my blog. We just finished a project exploring authoritarianism and how democracies can protect themselves. The end product for this project was to create a documentary explaining how we can prevent authoritarianism in our societies. My groups specific goal was to show how institutions like courts, schools, and the media can be threatened when one party gains too much power, and why it’s so important for citizens to stay informed and engaged. Through research, interviews, and creating our documentary, we wanted to bring these ideas to life and make them especially easy to understand. 

What is Authoritarianism?

When we first started on this project, I thought that I had a decent idea of what authoritarianism looked like. It my mind, it was something that only existed in history books or far off countries. But as we dove deeper into researching this project, I began to realize how close it can sit beneath the surface of a democracy.

The most powerful thing I learned was that democracy doesn’t collapse with one big event or revolution, it wears down slowly, as explained in Timothy Snyder’s lessons on Tyranny. 

Timothy Snyder’s lessons on Tyranny

My Section:

As mentioned earlier, my section focused on institutions, and how protecting them, like courts, the media, and schools, can protect democracy. Writing this part about institutions made me look at power a different way. Of course politicians sometimes don’t like media, but it is still their job to not censor or change it in any way. In making this documentary, Logan and I co-wrote our script, giving Brooke plenty of detail to make our idea into reality. I also interviewed Mr. Hughes with Silas and Chris, as well as finding B-roll that goes with the script. Mr. Hughes is a very big traveller, and his adventures have taken him all the way to North Korea, a country under an authoritarian dictator. When asked questions about the country, he recalled how weird it was to be somewhere where you were constantly monitored and controlled. 

The Challenges:

There were definitely challenges in the making of our documentary; everyone had different opinions on what to include, especially when comparing past and present governments. It was easy to go too far or not far enough. What helped was stepping back and asking what messages we want to send. Reminding ourselves that we were focusing on institutions helped make our section stronger. 

This project helped me grow as a researcher and communicator. Researching this project was difficult because we were dealing with peoples opinions, and also some peoples traumatic experiences. Communicating with my group was difficult at first but then became easier and easier as we learned how we work together and can make a successful project. 

Democracy:

I used to think democracy was just about voting or following Alaws, but it’s really about people paying attention. Education matter because it builds critical thinking, and that’s what keeps citizens aware. The moment we stop questioning what we’re told, democracy started to thin out. 

Looking back, this project connected strongly to my vision and values. It reminded me that curiosity and honesty matter more than certainty. I want to keep learning about systems like this because understanding them feels like a way to protect something bigger than myself. 

If I had to sum up everything I learned, I’d say this: 

Democracy doesn’t survive by accident. It survives because people decide it’s worth the effort.

Here is the finished product: