“Threats to Democracy and Preventing Decline”
Tune into “Be Bold America!” Sunday, September 1 at 5:00pm
Our democracy is in danger and Protect Democracy (protectdemocracy.org) is watching and indexing the threats not seen in generations. In partnership with the “Authoritarian Warning Survey”, they currently rank the threat level as: “Substantial Erosion.” What does this mean and how do we fight the significant threats to our already teetering democracy?
Protect Democracy has identified six threats to our ability to save our American democracy: Politicizing Independent Institutions, Spreading Disinformation, Executive Power Grabs, Quashing Dissent, Delegitimizing Communities, and Corrupting Elections. Please join in by listening to Paulina Montañez-Montes from Protect Democracy, and Mike Rotkin, five-time Mayor of the City of Santa Cruz, as they discuss more fully what thesProtect Democracy Media Releasee threats are and how we can fight to save the Republic.
Paulina Montañez-Montes has spent nearly a decade serving as an advisor and operative in both local and federal government and for political campaigns. Before joining Protect Democracy, she was Senior Digital Strategist at a boutique digital firm where she led fundraising email programs for a number of high-profile Congressional races critical to flipping the House in 2018. She has also served the Obama administration in Secretary Penny Pritzker’s office at the U.S. Department of Commerce and on the Advance Travel Team for the Office of the Vice President Joe Biden, ensuring the seamless execution of trips or engagements in the U.S. and abroad. Paulina earned her master’s degree from the George Washington University’s Graduate School of Political Management.
Mike Rotkin is a former five-time mayor of the City of Santa Cruz and served six terms on the Santa Cruz City Council between 1979 and 2010. Mike retired after teaching 42 years in the Community Studies Dept. at UCSC, where he served as Director of the Field Studies Program, supervising student interns working on social and environmental issues in Santa Cruz and around the globe. Mike currently does part-time organizing and grievance work for the University Council of the American Federation of Teachers. He has been recalled to teach part-time at UCSC and serves on the Board of Directors of the Coastal Watershed Council and the Democratic Women’s Club of Santa Cruz County.
