A Columbia professor on the campus protests

And why democracy today suffers from a lost sense of open-ended time. APRIL 30, 2024  |  [VIEW IN BROWSER](  |  [SUBSCRIBE](     Pro-Palestinian protesters hold placards as they take part in a protest at Columbia University in New York on April 23. Jimin Kim/SOPA Images/Sipa USA via AP For a long time, FP didn’t think it was our place to cover the student protests roiling on American college campuses around the Israel-Hamas war. While the subject of the students’ agitation was squarely in our wheelhouse, we thought the story itself was a domestic one. As the protests, and counter-protests, have increased in intensity over these last few weeks, however, it became clear these clashes were telling us something meaningful about U.S. foreign policy, and how it is being received by Americans. [Enter FP columnist]( Howard W. French, a professor at Columbia University where much of the most contentious disagreement has occurred, who argues that the scenes he has seen on campus reveal no less than “a crisis of politics in the United States.” French prompts Americans to ask, swapping out the topic of Israel-Palestine for another, “if a student protest movement like this were happening on such a scale in other countries, what would the U.S. response be?” Outside of the news cycle—but somehow defining the zeitgeist, nonetheless—Ivan Krastev and Leonard Benardo, of the Center for Liberal Strategies and the Open Society Foundations, respectively, suggest that if there is an [underlying democratic crisis]( in the West, perhaps it is because of a lost sense of open-ended time. In their review of Jonathan White’s In the Long Run: The Future as a Political Idea, the authors write that “today our relationship to the future is marked by collective distrust.” That’s a problem, because as White insists in his new book, “distant and utopian futures, ones radically different from today’s reality, are also constitutive for democratic regimes.” Because it seems to speak directly to the erosion of institutions in Western societies, I will be thinking about this thought in Krastev and Benardo’s [review]( for some time. That is: “Democratic politics functions as a nationwide therapy session where voters are confronted with their worst nightmares—a new war, demographic collapse, economic crisis, environmental horror—but are convinced they have the power to avert the devastation. In other words, democratic politics is impossible without a persistent oscillation between excessive overdramatization and trivialization of the problems we face.” But what happens when, as with the potentially apocalyptic threat of climate change, the therapy session no longer yields solutions, or even actionable steps?—Amelia Lester, executive editor   New and Noteworthy - Netanyahu’s hostage bluff: Qatar had acted as a mediator between Gaza and Israel for years before the current outbreak of conflict. Now, disagreements on how the war will continue to unfold—and the fate of the remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza—have complicated the role it plays, making for an increasingly “tricky gamble,” Anchal Vohra [writes](. - Munitions deficit: Despite strong bipartisan support for “substantial investment in defense production,” Congress has been slow to act in accordance, Robert Almelor Delfeld [writes](. Instead, Delfeld argues that key reforms are needed to better distribute the defense sector across multiple states, which will help align the government and defense sector. - Shortsighted policies: “Iran’s apparent resilience is not simply the product of its own strength, but also largely a consequence of U.S. strategic ineptitude,” Lina Khatib [writes](. Despite 15 years of pressure and policies, Khatib argues that Washington’s approach to Iran has been ironically passive and myopic because of a narrow focus on Iran’s nuclear program.   Unlimited analysis, arguments, ideas and more. [Read anywhere. Cancel anytime.](   [FP Live]( [How to Stave Off a Famine in Gaza]( May 2 | 12 p.m ETThe World Food Program [warns]( that a famine in Gaza is “getting closer by the day.” A United Nations-backed [report]( says it’s “imminent.” With food, fuel, and medicine all in short supply, who is responsible for providing aid to the millions of displaced Gazans? FP’s Ravi Agrawal will sit down with two experts on the humanitarian emergency in Gaza: Sari Bashi, the program director of Human Rights Watch, and Shira Efron, Israel Policy Forum’s research director. [Register now](. [Fareed Zakaria on an Age of Revolutions]( May 22 | 11 a.m. ETAre we living in an age of revolutions? In his previous books, CNN host and author Fareed Zakaria foresaw the growth of illiberal democracy and “the rise of the rest”—two trends that define geopolitics today. Zakaria will join FP’s Ravi Agrawal for a wide-ranging discussion about his latest book, Age of Revolutions: Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present. [Register now](. [Inside the GOP’s Foreign Policy]( On DemandWhat would a second Trump term mean for U.S. foreign policy? Who has the former president’s ear on world affairs? FP columnist Matthew Kroenig joined FP Live to discuss these questions in the context of his new book, We Win, They Lose: Republican Foreign Policy & the New Cold War, co-written with Dan Negrea and with a foreword from former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. [Watch]( the conversation now, or [read]( the edited transcript.   Exercise Your Mind The United States on Wednesday called for all armed factions to cease military operations in which Sudanese state? - North Darfur - South Kordofan - Khartoum - Gezira You can find the answer to this question and learn more at the end of this email.   FROM FP EVENTS [From Resistance to Resilience]( The rapid acceleration of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has made it one of the World Health Organization’s top 10 global health threats. Join Foreign Policy and the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations in New York for a discussion on the near-term collaboration needed to address AMR. [REGISTER NOW](   Most Popular [The receiving station for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in Lubmin on Feb. 2, 2022.]( [How Globalization Rose and Fell With Nord Stream]( The pipeline bringing Russian gas to Europe was once seen as a triumph for borderless business—but Putin’s invasion of Ukraine put an end to that fantasy. By Elisabeth Braw [Supporters of the main opposition Republican People’s Party take part in a post-election rally in Ankara, Turkey, on April 4. ]( [Turkey’s Democracy Is Down but Not Out]( An invigorated opposition is ready for a constitutional fight. By Kate Johnston, Gibbs McKinley [Where Global Governance Went Wrong—and How to Fix It]( International agreements have not balanced our freedoms in the way that they should. By Joseph E. 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Stiglitz [HBO’s ‘The Sympathizer’ Leans Into the Tragic Absurdity of the Vietnam War](The series lampoons the military, academia, and Hollywood portrayals of the era. By Jordan Hoffman   From Around FP - Grad School Guide: Selecting which graduate school to attend is an important step in building a meaningful career in international relations. [Click here]( to access the latest version of FP’s sponsored graduate guide and request information from schools. Learn directly from top-tier graduate programs about course offerings, interdisciplinary approaches, experiential learning, and external partnerships to find a program that aligns with your career goals. - Assessing Gender Equality: [The Hidden Economics of Remarkable Women]( (HERO) is a Foreign Policy production supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Buffett Institute at Northwestern University. This season, host Reena Ninan and reporters around the world are focusing on girls—how they are pushing for a brighter, more powerful future and what the rest of us can do to set them up for success. Look out for new episodes every Tuesday on [Apple](, [Spotify](, or wherever you enjoy podcasts. - The India Issue: Keep up with the world’s biggest elections through FP’s latest magazine, “[The India Issue](.” Containing essays by journalist [Snigdha Poonam](, economist [Arvind Subramanian](, novelist [Amitava Kumar](, and FP’s [Ravi Agrawal]( and [Rishi Iyengar](, discover insights that contextualize the ongoing parliamentary elections in India.   Are you interested in learning more about FP Analytics’ cutting-edge research services, hosting an FP Virtual Dialogue event, or building a podcast with FP Studios? [Explore partnership opportunities](. Answer: A. North Darfur. The call to end attacks in the state and Al-Fashir, its capital, comes on the heels of a congressional letter to Biden that called for U.S. sanctions on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and its leader, FP’s Nosmot Gbadamosi [writes]( in Africa Brief. [Subscribe to Foreign Policy]( [The world, at your fingertips]( Keeping up with global moments has never been more essential. Save up to 50% when you join our community of readers today. [SUBSCRIBE NOW](   [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn]( You’re receiving this email at {EMAIL} because you signed up for FP's This Week newsletter. [MANAGE YOUR EMAIL PREFERENCES]( | [VIEW OUR PRIVACY POLICY]( | [UNSUBSCRIBE]( Interested in partnering with FP on events, podcasts, or research? [Explore FP Solutions](. [Foreign Policy]( is a division of Graham Holdings Company. All contents © 2023 Graham Digital Holding Company LLC. All rights reserved. Foreign Policy, 655 15th St NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC, 20005.