Thomas Mann House | 7 p.m. (PT)

The US elections have left a polarized society. Regardless of personal views on the outcome, the electoral campaigns have severely deepened societal divisions. Over the past years, public debates about the Covid-19 pandemic, immigration or social inequality have become increasingly polarized. Political positions are irreconcilably opposed, becoming more and more heated and unforgiving. Discussions are fueled by the depiction of different sides as representing “right” or “wrong” answers. Have we lost sight of the value of compromise?

Certainly, one of the greatest strengths of democracy is the ability to reach political compromises. In heterogeneous societies, compromise is necessary. However, the ability to allow agreement and make concessions on the most pressing social issues has diminished in recent years. Each side denies the other legitimate opposition and different views on the issues at stake. Populists play on the idea that there is only one will of the people and that they are the only ones that can represent this will. Instead, compromises are seen as signs of weakness. This represents a major Achilles' heel for heterogenous and pluralistic societies, both in the United States and Germany.

Of course, finding compromise is not a panacea for all types of problems. While it represents a technique for peaceful conflict resolution that pragmatically advances the status quo, there are also limits that should be taken into account, particularly when authoritarian populists put democracy under pressure. When do we reach limits of compromise and when should we rather remain firm on liberal and democratic principles? When does compromise even backfire, legitimizing a refutable political position?

This roundtable discussion brings together political scientists and political activists to discuss the ambivalence of political compromise in times of increasing polarization. It focuses on current challenges imposed on democracies by populists and discusses how populists prevent compromise, while also debating when and where liberal democracies need to draw a line and limit compromise.

Attendance by invitation only.

Participants

Johannes Gerschewski is a research fellow at the WZB Berlin Social Science Center and coordinates the work of the Theory Network at the Cluster of Excellence “Contestations of the Liberal Script (SCRIPTS).” He has published in academic journals including American Political Science Review, Perspectives on Politics, and Comparative Political Studies. His book on The Two Logics of Autocratic Rule was published in April 2023 by Cambridge University Press.

Allison Lee serves as PEN America’s Los Angeles Director. She was the Chief Development Officer for TIME’S UP, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting gender equity and ending sexual violence in the workplace. She has previously served as Vice President of External Affairs at Bet Tzedek Legal Services, where she worked, among other things, to launch their Rapid Response Family Immigration Project and Transgender Advocacy Program. Prior to that, Allison served for eight years as the founding Executive Director of American Jewish World Service – Southern California. Allison received her B.A. in Political Science and American Studies from Tufts University.

Pola Lehmann is a research fellow at the WZB Berlin Social Science Center and co-director of the Manifesto Project. She studied administrative sciences at the Universities of Potsdam and Copenhagen. Her research focuses on democracy and political representation, political parties and elections, and machine learning. In her dissertation, which won the Leibniz Dissertation Award in 2021, she investigated political representation and compromise in the German Bundestag.

Kurt Weyland is Professor of Government and Mike Hogg Professor in Liberal Arts at the University of Texas at Austin. Based on research conducted in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Peru, and Venezuela, he has published many journal articles and book chapters, as well as seven books, most recently Assault on Democracy: Communism, Fascism, and Authoritarianism during the Interwar Years (Cambridge, 2021); and Democracy’s Resilience to Populism’s Threat (Cambridge, 2024).

Thomas Aujero Small is the CEO of Culver City Forward, Chair of LA METRO Sustainability Council and member of the Mobility Committee of the Urban Land Institute Los Angeles. He served as Mayor of Culver City from 2018-2019, during his four-year term as a Culver City Council Member (2016-2020). He is also on the Transportation Policy Committee of the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG). On the Culver City Council, he served on several Subcommittees, including: the General Plan Update; Economic Development; Mobility, Traffic and Parking; Financial Planning and Budget; and the Ballona Creek Revitalization Task Force.