What Makes a Democracy Strong?

Author: Amanda Amadi-Emina

With the recent shooting of right-wing political influencer, Charlie Kirk, the conversation on political violence and what it means for our democracy, has swept over the United States, like another trend. When we talk about democracy, especially in America, we think of voting booths, peaceful protests, and the like. We rarely consider the power violence can have in creating change.

However, when it comes to the dealings of human history and political affairs, violence has always had a major role in how things play out. Many argue against violence, deeming it cruel and unnecessary, while others see violence as vital to creating and maintaining a strong, and true democratic state. In order to determine whether political violence goes hand in hand with democracy, we must first define political violence. According to the World Health Organization (2002), political violence is the deliberate use of power and force to achieve political goals. This definition can be argued against or made more complex and nuanced, but for the sake of word count, we’ll leave it at that. 

With this in mind, many recent acts of violence can be seen as “political violence”. But what separates brutal displays of power from necessary evils?  

Think of it this way, several formidable states were born out of revolution. The colonists didn’t politely pose the question of independence to King George. Black South Africans didn’t twiddle their thumbs at an apartheid state. They pulled themselves up by the bootstraps and fought for it. When groups are oppressed, sometimes resorting to force is the only way justice can be served. Across history, time and time again, democracy has risen from the ashes of authoritative governments as a result of necessary violence.

There are many examples in which this ideology rings true. During the Haitian revolution, it was the violence enacted by slaves against their white masters that won the state its independence in 1804, and in the late 80s it was aggressive protests that brought about the fall of communism. 

Political violence is not the end all be all for saving democracy, but certainly should be regarded as a failsafe against totalitarianism.