Throughout her career, Theda Skocpol has contributed to public conversations about American democracy, civic life, political institutions, and higher education. Her engagement has taken many forms, including public essays, interviews, keynote lectures, and media commentary. The materials collected here reflect an ongoing effort to connect scholarly research to contemporary political and civic debates.
Minneapolis Is Showing a New Kind of Anti-Trump Resistance
In conversation with Vox, Skocpol explains why Minneapolis’s neighborhood-level response to the federal immigration enforcement surge represents a new model of resistance, rooted in state and local institutions and shared civic values.
At Harvard University and Boston College, Conservatives Test Free Speech
Commenting on campus free speech controversies at Harvard and Boston College, Skocpol argues that provocative rhetoric is best answered by explaining its historical overtones rather than attributing motives.
What No Kings Protesters Should Be Doing Now
Following the October 2025 No Kings protests, Skocpol argues that the value of mass protest lies in creating openings for sustained local organizing that builds lasting political power.
Rising Threats to U.S. Democracy: Roots and Responses
In her 2024 James Madison Lecture to the American Political Science Association, Skocpol traces rising threats to U.S. democracy to the radicalization of the Republican Party and its allies, from legal hardball tactics to extralegal harassment and intimidation.
Strategy Memo on Rust Belt Union Blues
A strategy memo arguing that Rust Belt Union Blues, by Lainey Newman and Theda Skocpol, offers a more grounded explanation than polling-based accounts of why working-class voters have left the Democratic Party.
Kevin McCarthy’s Downfall Is the Culmination of the Tea Party
Skocpol traces Kevin McCarthy’s ouster as Speaker back to the Tea Party, showing how the movement’s anti-compromise politics ultimately consumed the Republican leaders who rose by harnessing it.
Stop the Steal’ Is a Metaphor (Interview with Theda Skocpol)
Skocpol draws a direct line from the Tea Party to the “Stop the Steal” movement, describing election denial as less about ballots than about who is seen as rightfully setting the nation’s direction.
Working Together to Meet the Public Challenges of This Time
In her address to Harvard’s 2022 Phi Beta Kappa graduates, Skocpol draws on Harvard’s history to call on a new generation to meet the challenges facing democracy and civil society.
On University Obligations to Support Freedom of Discussion, Research, and Teaching (Academic Freedom Principles Statement from SSN Leaders)
A statement of principles from Scholars Strategy Network leaders calling on colleges and universities to protect freedom of research, teaching, and open discussion against pressures from inside and outside academia.
Resistance Disconnect: How Indivisible’s National Advocates and Grassroots Volunteers Have Pulled Apart
Drawing on original research on local resistance groups, Skocpol and Caroline Tervo examine how Indivisible’s national leadership and its grassroots volunteers have drifted apart, and what a better-connected model could look like.
A Guide to Rebuilding the Democratic Party, from the Ground Up
Written after the 2016 election, this essay argues that Democrats should prioritize rebuilding party organizations at the state and local levels, alongside efforts to protect voter access and renew membership-based associations.
