This blog is written by Annie Boyajian, president of Freedom House, and cross-posted from Alliance Magazine.
The fight for freedom can’t wait
It was a privilege to be a guest at the Innovations in International Philanthropy Symposium, where I had an opportunity to exchange ideas with some of the world’s brightest philanthropic thinkers and to gain a better understanding of the missions that drive their work.
A core challenge to democracy that animates my work at Freedom House is that for years, the world’s autocrats have tested the limits of democratic solidarity and resilience. In 2025, democracy’s defences are in danger of faltering. According to Freedom House’s Freedom in the World report, fewer than one in five people enjoy the full spectrum of political rights and civil liberties, and global freedom has declined for the 19th consecutive year.
What’s more, autocratic leaders aren’t confining their abuses to home soil, and they’re not acting alone. They’re deliberately working together to silence their critics, enrich themselves, and promote a new international system where respecting and protecting human rights isn’t a priority. Last month, Freedom House highlighted how Alyaksandr Luksahenka’s regime in Belarus helped enable Russian military atrocities that accompanied the Kremlin’s illegal, full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Additional research alongside our partners uncovered evidence that Belarusian authorities also facilitated the illegal transfer of Ukrainian children to Belarusian youth camps, where they were subject to indoctrination meant to destroy their Ukrainian identity.
Freedom House’s groundbreaking work on transnational repression showed how autocratic governments like those in China and Thailand wilfully cooperate to target exiled dissidents and diasporas. This spring, we noted that some of the worst perpetrators of transnational repression can shape global human rights policy through their seats on the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
The spread of authoritarianism doesn’t only threaten people living under repressive governments, or the brave individuals who speak up to expose government abuses. It threatens all of us by eroding the institutions that support and enable democracy and by undermining faith in democracy itself.
Democracies are not immune from criticism. Many—including Brazil, India, Hungary, and the United States—have experienced backsliding in recent years. And, many are cutting foreign assistance budgets, including the United States, which has dramatically reduced spending. The United States has also pulled back from its traditional level of engagement in multilateral institutions like the United Nations, and has taken unprecedented actions at home that raised constitutional questions and legal challenges. These actions leave room for autocrats to exert greater influence around the world and to point toward actions democracies have taken as justification for their own behaviour.
If democratic governments want to meet the challenge of the moment, it will require getting their own houses in order and investing financially in the future of global freedom. Democracy is the only system of government that holds leaders accountable to the people and requires dramatically different interests to resolve their disputes through peaceful advocacy, debate, and deliberation. Today’s burgeoning alternative—a world where might makes right—poses danger to us all.
How we meet the challenge of our era
Standing up to the authoritarian assault on freedom and democracy is the challenge of our era. It’s a struggle that will decide not what the world will look like next year or a decade from now, but the survival of freedom for generations to come. Democracy’s defenders, including the philanthropic community, can’t wait. They must act decisively, they must act together, and they must act now.
Fortunately, there are proven strategies for standing up to the world’s autocratic bullies and defending democratic values against their attacks. These recommendations are informed not only by Freedom House’s research and analysis, but also by the rich insights I gained from the professionals who shared their work and their passion for making philanthropy more impactful at the Innovations in International Philanthropy Symposium.
Democracy’s defenders should unite in a broad-based coalition that welcomes everyone dedicated to championing democratic values and fighting back against authoritarian abuses. The world’s autocrats are working together across borders; democracy’s advocates must respond in kind.
Support for organizations that stand up for democratic values—press and internet freedom organizations, religious freedom groups, corruption watchdogs, and women’s and minority rights advocates, to name a few—should be responsive to what front-line experts say they need to best do their work. What worked in one place may not be effective in another, and on-the-ground experts possess invaluable context that can shape successful programs.
Support for organizations that defend democratic values should be flexible. Onerous conditions can interfere with a program’s effective deployment. Financial support and grant programs should also prioritize long-term resilience, rather than solely rewarding the leanest or most creative solutions.
In societies where democracy is under direct attack, the organizations doing the most critical work may also be the ones experiencing the most serious duress. Emergency assistance support, temporary relocation opportunities, medical assistance, legal aid, and digital security installation, support, and training may be crucial to an organization’s resilience, or even its survival.
International collaborations, convenings, and symposia provide crucial platforms for democracy’s defenders to support one another, share strategies, and amplify their work and its impact. In Freedom House’s study on attacks against media in Europe, for example, Hungarian journalists described how international collaborations expanded access to technical and other support needed for an exposé on spyware abuse. They also described how global legal defense programs provided a lifeline in an environment where SLAPPs (strategic lawsuits against public participation) threaten their livelihoods. These forums also provide opportunities for practitioners to meet potential donors.
Freedom House has been assessing the state of global democracy for more than 50 years. Among our most profound findings is that the fight for freedom persists across decades. In the face of repression—from imprisonment, to exile, or even the risk of lethal violence—ordinary people around the world continue to defend their rights against authoritarian encroachment. The fight for a free, prosperous, and democratic future is only possible with the support, and financial backing and commitment, of those who share a commitment to defending democracy and expanding freedom around the world.
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Annie Boyajian is president of Freedom House.
