Dear John, Last week, we gathered for WOLA's first Annual Human Rights Awards Lecture, and what we heard was both sobering and galvanizing. Dr. Steven Levitsky reminded us that democracy doesn't die in a single dramatic moment. It erodes gradually—through the normalization of abuses, the silencing of dissent, and the weakening of institutions. We're seeing this playbook unfold in real time—both in Latin America and in the United States.
We honored MOVIR—families in El Salvador organizing for justice despite enormous risks under Bukele's brutal state of emergency. We recognized Senator Tim Kaine's decades of principled leadership on Latin American human rights. And we confronted the reality that threats to democracy in our hemisphere and here at home are deeply interconnected.
Watch the full recording here. |
Dr. Levitsky, whose book How Democracies Die became essential reading for understanding this moment, shared something striking when I asked what he's learned in the seven years since: he never thought the deterioration could happen this fast. But he also left us with hope—reminding us that democratic decline is not inevitable. That's the spirit that drives WOLA's work: the belief that with strategic action, committed partners, and sustained support, we can defend and strengthen democracy across the Americas.
As we close out Human Rights Awards Month, I'm asking you to make a contribution to WOLA—not next week, not when things calm down, but today. Because the threats we're facing won't wait. The defense of democracy is the issue of our time. And WOLA chooses to fight.
Today, we're asking you to fight with us.
In solidarity, |
