Democracy Web

We Demand Voting Rights March. Photo by Unseen Histories on Unsplash

Campaign posters for a 2008 plebiscite on Evo Morales’s presidency

This document is the first printed version of the American Declaration of Independence. John Dunlap, the official printer of the Continental Congress, issued the first of these publications on the evening of July 4, 1776. From The New York Public Library

Group of people waving South African flags. Shutterstock, photo by Rawpixel.com

East and West Berliners broke through the Berlin Wall on November 8, 1989, presaging the fall of the East German communist regime and leading to unification of East and West Germany. Above, demonstrators atop part of the wall before Brandenburg Gate, the border of the once divided city. The Fall of the Berlin Wall by Arthur bon Moktke (GNU Free Documentation License). 

Democracy Web, a project of the Albert Shanker Institute, is an on-line resource for the study of democracy. The study guide and map offer an overview of the basic architecture of democracy, give historical background information, and provide a framework for comparing the state of political rights and civil liberties in different countries around the world.

How to Use Democracy Web

Person using black and silver laptop. Photo by Daniel Thomas on Unsplash

Want to read more on how to use Democracy Web?

Learn How to Use

Woman writing on paper. Photo by Pixabay

Ready to get started? Find your study topic, explore the information, and continue the conversation with the study questions and activities.

Find your Study Guide Section

Featured Reports

Protestors take part during a demonstration in front of the Iranian embassy in Brussels, Belgium on Sept. 23, 2022, following the death of Mahsa Amini. Photo by Alexandros Michailidis

IRAN COUNTRY STUDY: Consent of the Governed

Status: Not Free

Freedom Rating: 11/100 | Political Rights: 4/40 | Civil Liberties: 7/60

The territory of Iran, previously known as Persia, was ruled by monarchical dynasties or occupied and dominated by foreign powers for nearly all of its recorded history.

Campaign posters for a 2008 plebiscite on Evo Morales’s presidency

BOLIVIA COUNTRY STUDY: Consent of the Governed

Status: Partly Free

Freedom Rating: 66/100 | Political Rights: 27/40 | Civil Liberties: 39/60

Bolivia has had 40 years of civilian rule but faces significant challenges following a political crisis in 2019-20.

Political poster featuring Gary Cooper to encourage votes for the Solidarity party in the 1989 Polish elections. Tomasz Sarneck, 1989

POLAND COUNTRY STUDY: Free, Fair & Regular Elections

Status: Free

Freedom Rating: 80/100 | Political Rights: 33/40 | Civil Liberties: 47/60

Since 1989, Poland has been a free and sovereign country following more than two centuries of foreign domination, occupation, and control.

Study Guide Sections