Political Science | Penn Today

Supporters of Donald Trump scale a wall at the U.S. Capitol as Trump flags wave

Riot at the U.S. Capitol, one year later

Political scientist Rogers Smith shares five things to keep in mind as the country looks back on Jan. 6, 2021, while trying to move forward.

Ten years later, examining the Occupy movement’s legacy

For Jessa Lingel of the Annenberg School for Communication, a decade after Occupy Wall Street’s beginnings presented an opportunity for reflection, which she led this fall semester in a new course.

People silohetted against a hill at sunset

Perry World House explores the end of asylum

In a Perry World House talk, political scientist Michael Jones-Correa of the School of Arts & Sciences discussed the end of asylum, “one of the most pressing issues of our time,” he said.

White House points finger at the press

Victor Pickard of the Annenberg School for Communication weighed in on the relationship between the media and the Biden administration. “They don’t want to have the same relationship that the Trump administration had, and I don’t think they do,” said Pickard.

Police officer stands in front of his car on a street near the ocean boardwalk in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Q&A

Looking at community policing in the Global South

A collaborative study, co-authored by a group of researchers, including political scientists Dorothy Kronick and Guy Grossman of the School of Arts & Sciences, showed no significant positive effect associated with community policing across a range of countries

How changing norms around civility in politics might affect American democracy

Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center commented on the history of violence in U.S. political discourse and its effect on the country. “We’ve normalized the language of vilification in politics by casting people who disagree with us as enemies, as opposed to people who have a philosophical disagreement, and then suggesting that they’re evil,” she said.

Politics, activism, and academics

The career of Tulia Falleti, Class of 1965 Endowed Term Professor of Political Science in the School of Arts & Sciences, grew from her activism as a student in a newly democratic Argentina.

‘Total military shutdown’: Cuban government cracks down ahead of planned protests

Amalia Daché of the Graduate School of Education was interviewed about protests and censorship in Cuba. “Cuba has had a political apartheid for 62 years and Cuban people have been repressed, have been silenced, have been put in prison,” she said.

Students bend over to fill out paperwork on a table

2020 voting report: By the numbers

Penn students voted in unprecedented numbers during the 2020 presidential election, in part due to the voter-engagement program Penn Leads the Vote, which recently won the 2021 ALL IN Democracy Challenge Best Action Plan Award.

‘Gen Z is coming of age with real purpose’: College students set record for voting in 2020 election

Harrison Feinman, a College of Arts and Sciences senior and director of Penn Leads the Vote, said he was encouraged by the rise in voting among college students. “People are finally starting to understand about the importance of voting and how that is a form of activism,” he said.

Filters