From Marquette’s Julia Azari, To Save Democracy, We Can’t Shy Away From the Toughest Issues:

“[N]ot confronting the racial realities of American society only pushes the problem further down the road, leaving us vulnerable to a repeat of the backlash cycle. In the wake of the 2016 and 2024 elections, Democrats are especially susceptible to election narratives that emphasize how they should have been more cautious and less bold about the interests of marginalized people – whether it’s the rights of transgender Americans, Black Americans, or immigrants. History shows that this will not work, and will impoverish rather than save democracy. Efforts to keep slavery off the national agenda or compromise the issue away, to dodge civil rights are not high points in our national story, and these efforts didn’t prevent crisis in the long run.”

From Columbia Law’s David Pozen, A Conventional Solution to Constitutional Stagnation?

“Making the U.S. Constitution amendable again, then, is likely to require a legal mechanism that does not depend on two-thirds majorities in the House and Senate, along with a cultural shift that makes constitutional reform seem more natural and desirable to more people. As it turns out, there is a potential solution to both requirements sitting in plain sight: the never-used provision of Article V that allows state legislatures to ‘call a convention for proposing amendments.’ The most straightforward way to reinvigorate ordinary Americans’ relationship to their fundamental law would be to call such a convention.”

Any scheme to make conventions more common will strike some as “extreme.” I feel trepidation about it as well. Yet almost everything about contemporary U.S. constitutional politics is extreme, from rampant gerrymandering and runaway inequality to hyper-partisanship and an administration that grows more authoritarian by the week. Insofar as changes to our structure of government are needed to break out of this doom loop, constitutional conventions deserve consideration.

From Heath Mayo, Executive Director of Principles First, Democracy’s Last Line of Defense: Us —

Principles First was founded on this idea: that principled citizens must lead the way in restoring democratic norms. We’ve seen firsthand how powerful it can be when people of different backgrounds come together around shared values — not just to talk, but to act. We’ve hosted town halls, built coalitions, and supported candidates who put country over party. And we’ve done it without asking anyone to abandon their core beliefs — only to prioritize the rule of law and the integrity of our institutions.

That’s the model we need. Not a unity of ideology, but a unity of purpose. A recognition that democracy depends on more than policy wins. It depends on the character of our civic life. And that character is shaped by what we tolerate, what we reward, and what we’re willing to fight for.

So yes, we need reform. We need better laws, stronger guardrails, and more responsive institutions. But none of that will matter if citizens aren’t engaged. If we want a democracy that works, we have to work for it — not just once every four years, but every day. We have to show up, speak out, and vote with our principles intact.

Because in the end, the Constitution doesn’t enforce itself. Norms don’t police themselves. Institutions don’t protect themselves. We do.

And if we’re serious about preserving democracy, we have to be serious about organizing — across party lines, across differences, and across the country. That’s the last line of defense. And it’s the one we can’t afford to neglect.