Ours is the age of the strongman, of heads of state who damage or destroy democracy, use masculinity as a tool of political legitimacy, and promise law and order rule – and then legitimize lawless behavior by financial, sexual, and other predators. Covering a century of tyranny, in her latest book Strongmen - How Illiberal Leaders Consolidate Power And How They Can Be Defeated, Ruth Ben-Ghiat examines how authoritarians use propaganda, virility, corruption, and violence to stay in power, and how they can be defeated.

She looks at larger autocratic patterns, like the toll of corruption on militaries and how late-stage autocrats behave, to help us contextualize current world events. The story of the strongman, rife with tragedy, also offers lessons in hope and resiliency.  It urges us to invest in democracy and protect it rather than take our freedoms for granted. The cost of not doing so is far too great.


"With a steady gaze and an eye for the telling detail, Ruth Ben-Ghiat delivers a timely analysis of how a certain kind of charisma delivers political disaster – and some valuable hints about how it can be resisted, and the virtues we will need to rebuild democracy."
– Timothy Snyder, author of On Tyranny

"Ben-Ghiat’s portrayal of fascist-era tyrants, murderous Cold War dictators, and would-be tyrants in our own day gives us a gripping and illuminating picture of how strongmen have deployed violence, seduction, and corruption. History, she shows, offers clear lessons not only about how these regimes are built, but also how they must be opposed, and how they end."
– Daniel Ziblatt, coauthor of How Democracies Die

Moderation: Professor Kiran Patel, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München


Photo: Book cover Strongmen - How Illiberal Leaders Consolidate Power And How They Can Be Defeated ©Amerikahaus - Bavarian Center for Transatlantic Relations