Populism makes the death of democracy a Fait Acompli

“First, they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.”

Martin Niemoller

Just as history is the biography of great men, political history is a tapestry woven painfully by knavish politicians. These leaders have vied terrible fights for power and have long polarised societies, to the detriment of all. If we are to suppose that the right to democracy need be protected, I want to briefly explore populism and how it destroys such an end.

Populism as an ailment

I first think it prudent to see populism as a disease of decadence, common to all dying empires. Gone is the little inconvenient matter of civil competence and accountability. In its place, the thunderous applause of the manipulated. And when institutions fail in duties, or God forbid, their social contracts, it is ultimately what they turn to. Think of Erdogan’s Turkey or Rome’s bread and circuses; any semblance of functionality long since trampled. Let us also invoke the most infamous example- of the Nazis against the Jews.

But while populism is undoubtedly not a new phenomenon, its forms today are of a much more virulent strain. What has gone from flesh and genes have become bytes and avatars. No longer does political power grow from the barrel of a gun, but rather the update of a status. And a generation raised on TikTok knows only the dopamine of conformity. If Zuckerberg is guilty of only one thing, it must be discord. More than anyone, he has enabled the pitting of the 99 against the 1%.

With social struggles on the rise, its is also something I see as a growing issue. For there are no ideal solutions to this great debacle of debt and demographics, and we need not be reminded of the last time Europe resembled such a powder keg of explosives.

But populism also has its last and much more nefarious edge- for it can often resemble a democracy. These demagogues will often invoke commonality, patriotism, and nostalgia, but we must not fall for such illusions, for they are nothing more than manifestations of tribalism.

The treatment for such a sickness

All this seems disturbing and pessimistic, but I hold it to be self-evident truth. For while the politicisation of information has made the pursuit of truth increasingly difficult, it is imperative we continue unpacking the political stage and forming our independent views rather than embracing the groupthink presented by the media.

To build a better world, the solution is that we will all need to act, whether by holding our political leaders to account or in the fight against misinformation.

And we must finally continue to be the voice of those who have none, and louder than both the rabble, and those who rouse them. Otherwise, populism shall lay the siege to the empire of democracy.