US Faces Democracy Crisis, Added to CIVICUS Watchlist

Successive United States governments have prided themselves on being governed by the Constitution of 1788. The First Amendment, introduced in 1791, laid the foundations for secularism, respect for fundamental freedoms, and the right to seek redress of grievances.

Presidential administrations from World War II through the Cold War and the ‘War on Terror’ sought to position the United States as a beacon of democracy. The Constitution was revered as a document guaranteeing civic freedoms that allow people to assemble, speak freely, and organise to advance their causes.

But that image is now unravelling. The United States has been added to the CIVICUS Monitor July 2025 Watchlist, alongside Kenya, El Salvador, Indonesia, Serbia, and Turkey — none of which are seen as strongholds of democracy. CIVICUS Monitor, a civil society research platform, measures civic freedoms worldwide. The reasons for the US’s inclusion are as alarming as they are undeniable.

The First Amendment guarantees the right to peaceful assembly. Yet in June this year, President Trump personally threatened protesters and deployed 700 Marines and 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles — a clear act of intimidation against peaceful dissent over his administration’s immigration policies.

Though some isolated incidents of violence occurred, the majority of protests were peaceful. Trump’s actions defied California’s governor and mirrored tactics used by authoritarian regimes to silence opposition.

His administration also violated due process rights of foreign-born student protest leaders advocating for Palestinian rights under Israeli occupation. Notable cases include Mahmoud Khalil, Mohsen Mahdawi, and Rumeysa Ozturk.

The First Amendment also protects press freedom. Historically, even powerful presidents respected the media’s watchdog role. Today, however, independent journalists face insults, rubber bullets, arbitrary arrests, and legal threats. Salvadoran journalist Mario Guevara, a legal US resident, was detained while livestreaming a peaceful protest and transferred to immigration custody without cause.

The Trump administration’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ cut $1.1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, defunding PBS, NPR, and independent local stations. Trump has also used lawsuits and questionable settlements to suppress critical media coverage — part of a broader campaign to undermine journalistic independence.

While the Constitution doesn’t explicitly mention nonprofits, the Supreme Court has ruled that freedom of association is protected. This right is now under siege. The same legislation that defunded public broadcasting also slashed billions in nonprofit funding, weakening support for marginalised communities.

The abrupt dismantling of USAID’s democracy support programmes has empowered authoritarian regimes worldwide, reducing global support for civil society groups.

The US is now rated as “narrowed” on the CIVICUS Monitor scale — indicating that civic freedoms exist in theory but are not fully upheld in practice. Militarised responses to protests, attacks on journalism, polarisation, and defunding of civil society are not merely policy choices — they represent breaches of foundational democratic principles.

On its first day, the Trump administration pardoned over 1,500 violent protesters convicted for storming the Capitol in January 2021, undermining the peaceful transfer of power — a cornerstone of US democracy. Meanwhile, critics of the administration face increasing repression, while MAGA-aligned groups operate freely.

Selective enforcement of constitutional rights undermines justice and democracy. When peaceful protest is treated as rebellion, journalism as subversion, and civil society as a threat, a government forfeits its claim to democratic leadership.

The world is watching — and so are we.

Mandeep S. Tiwana is Secretary General of global civil society alliance, CIVICUS.