Students Strengthening American Democracy
Lawyers Defending American Democracy is proud to collaborate with Students Strengthening American Democracy – bringing the cause of democracy to campuses around the country.
Students Strengthing American Democracy is a student-driven initiative based on a pledge with two components.
- The first is a commitment to volunteer or intern at an organization devoted to the ideals of democracy.
- The second is a commitment to vote.
This initiative (read our Origin Story) is a response to the danger signals our country currently faces. Democratic principles have been under attack as actions by the federal government have weakened basic constitutional principles, and states have passed laws that have moved closer to autocracy than democracy. We must both protect the democracy we have and strive to make it stronger.
Together, we hope to build a generation of leaders who understand that democracy is fragile and cannot be taken for granted. Its protection – and strengthening – depends on the engagement of all of us.
The Student Pledge
By pledging to vote, students are committing to take the most fundamental step needed for a thriving democracy. By pledging to engage with a pro-democracy organization, students are committing to taking actions that can make a difference.
Pro-Democracy Organizations
LDAD will continue to add names of nonprofit, nonpartisan, and pro-democracy organizations that students can contact for potential internship opportunities. Organizations that would like to be considered for inclusion should email students@LDAD.org.
Start a Chapter at Your School
Join our student-led drives to enlist students – with the support of faculty and administrative leaders – to pledge engagement with pro-democracy organizations and to vote. We'll offer you resources, mentorship, and whatever else you may need to make an impact.
Interconnected Threads: Exploring How the Health of Our Democracy Impacts Diverse Issues and Interests
The State of Black America 2023: Democracy Under Siege
National Urban League • Apr 9, 2024
Biden highlights the connection between rejecting democracy and race
The Washington Post • Jan 9, 2024
Democracy for Black Americans in Under Attack
Associated Press • Apr 16, 2023
Is democracy failing and putting our economic system at risk?
Brookings • Jan 4, 2022
Seven Steps Populists Worldwise are Taking to Undermine Democracy
The GroundTruth Project • Oct 17, 2019
US Should Protect Voters Ahead of 2024 Election
Human Rights Watch • Nov 2, 2023
Understanding Democratic Decline in the U.S
Brookings Institute • Oct 17, 2023
The Roberts Court's Overprotection of Free Speech and the Perfect Storm with Social Media
Gary J. Simson • Dec 15, 2023
Democracy and climate change
Yale Climate Connections • Jul 7, 2022
Election Laws Disproportionately Disadvantaging Racial Minorities, and the Futility of Trying to Solve Today's Problems with Yesterday's Never Very Good Tools
Gary J. Simson • Aug 19, 2021
How Voters and Civil Rights Advocates Can Prepare for the Upcoming Election Season
Legal Defense Fund • 2023
Williams Institute at UCLA: Democratic Backsliding and LGBTI Acceptance
UCLA Williams Institute • Sept 2023
U.N. warns that runaway inequality is destabilizing the world’s democracies
The Washington Post • Feb 11, 2020
Make democracy work better for the climate
Inter-Parliamentary Union • Aug 24, 2023
Abortion Legislation is a Democracy Issue
League of Women Voters • Mar 21, 2023
Democracy and the Challenge of Climate Change
International IDEA • Mar 2021
How Targeting LGBTQ+ Rights Are Part of the Authoritarian Playbook
Human Rights Watch • Sept 6, 2022
Maintaining Democracy is Crucial for American Economy
Forbes • Oct 19, 2022
The American Dream is dying, and it’s taking democracy with it
The Washington Post • Mar 5, 2021
Social Media Platforms Assemble Influence Army in D.C.
Issue One • Jan 30, 2024
How Social Media Helped Organize and Radicalize America's White Supremacists
Pacific Standard • Aug 15, 2017
Discourse: Dissent, Disagreement and Democracy
Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics • Feb 2024
AI and Its Implications for Democracy
Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics • Dec 2023
The End of Democratic Capitalism?
Foreign Affairs • Aug 2023
Battleground 2024: How Swing States Changed Voting Rules After the 2020 Election
Voting Rights Lab • Oct 2023
#StopTheSteal: Timeline of Social Media and Extremist Activities Leading to 1/6 Insurrection
Atlantic Council's DFRLab • Feb 10, 2021
State Legislatures' Lack of Representation Threatens Freedoms
National Partnership For Women and Families • Nov 2023
Democracy, Race and Gun Violence in America
Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics • Apr 26, 2023
Bots Are Destroying Political Discourse As We Know It
The Atlantic • Jan 7, 2020
Why the Climate Crisis Demands Democracy Reform
Brennan Center for Justice • Jul 1, 2021
Voting Laws Roundup (2023 In Review)
Brennan Center • 2023
Remarks at the 2022 Copenhagen Democracy Summit
Barack Obama • June 10, 2023
Democratic Vulnerabilities
American Democracy Collaborative • Jan 2022
A Democracy Crisis in the Making
Protect Democracy • Dec 7, 2023
The Burning of Democracy: A Banned Book Discussion
National Hispanic Media Coalition • Nov 24, 2023
The Ominous Cloud of Gerrymandering Hovering Over the 2024 Election
National Association of Social Workers • 2024
Banned In the USA: The Growing Movement to Censor Books in Schools
PEN AMERICA • 2023
DISCLAIMER: “Interconnected Threads” is provided as a resource for students and others seeking to understand better the link between a functioning democracy and advancements in civil rights and social justice. These articles are offered strictly for additional background reading and represent the perspectives of the cited sources only; they are not provided as official organizational opinions of Students Strengthening American Democracy or Lawyers Defending American Democracy. You may recommend articles on democracy by emailing hello@LDAD.org.