Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · 7h

This article offers an interesting twist on the analogy between national divorce and marital divorce – an analogy that I critique in The Disunited States. The author argues that where California is concerned, the US Government is guilty of “constructive abandonment.”

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · 7h

www.zocalopublicsquare.org/california-d...

California Doesn't Need to Secede | Connecting California

The Golden State Is Already Gone—The U.S. Committed ‘Constructive Abandonment’

www.zocalopublicsquare.org

1

Reposted by Ryan D. Griffiths

Daniel McDowell @danielmcdowell.bsky.social · 6d

We had a rousing conversation about the future of the dollar, the euro, and more at the @atlanticcouncil.bsky.social
Transatlantic Forum on GeoEconomics in Brussels earlier this week. Thanks to Josh Lipsky for leading us.

Watch the full panel here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6k6w...

1 2 6

Reposted by Ryan D. Griffiths

Centre on Constitutional Change @ccc-research.bsky.social · 6d

New blog!

The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won’t Work

Read @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social on what a project of American secession would look like, and why America is ill-suited for a peaceful 'national divorce'

Read more: edin.ac/46Tl0jy

The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won’t Work

There is a growing interest in secession, or what some refer to as a national divorce, between Red and Blue America. Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has called for it on multiple occasion...

edin.ac

6 3

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · 6d

A recent Times/Siena survey found that 64% of Americans think the country is too politically divided to solve its problems. Some might think a division into Redland and Blueland is the answer. It's not. I explain why in this book.

Oxford Academic @oxfordacademic.bsky.social · 7d

A 2023 Axios poll found that 1 in 5 Americans support a “national divorce” between red and blue states. With polarization rising, is secession a real solution or a dangerous illusion that could tear the country apart?

See more in “The Disunited States” available now: oxford.ly/4nC1zTC

Is the breakup of an increasingly polarized America into separate red and blue countries even possible? The Disunited States

2

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · 10d

I wrote an op-ed about the dangers of a second American civil war.

Commentary: How might future historians explain the events that led to a second civil war? www.timesunion.com/opinion/arti...

Commentary: How might future historians explain the events that led to a second civil war?

More than a dystopian thought experiment, it's a chance to recognize the signs — and change course.

www.timesunion.com

2 1

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · 12d

Thanks. I encourage you to read the book. A constitutional convention is one of the things I discuss.

1

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · 12d

This is why an "American Divorce" will not be peaceful.

thehill.com/opinion/cong...

thehill.com

1 1

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · 23d

In the wake of the Charlie Kirk assassination, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has once again called for a national divorce. But as I argue in a new book, an American divorce would be a violent disaster, and is no solution at all. See www.amazon.com/Disunited-St...

The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won't Work

The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won't Work - Kindle edition by Griffiths, Ryan D.. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won't Work.

www.amazon.com

2

Reposted by Ryan D. Griffiths

Laia Balcells @laiabalcells.bsky.social · 23d

I was at a panel at APSA that discussed this issue. Ryan D. Griffiths just wrote this book about it: global.oup.com/academic/pro...

1 2

Reposted by Ryan D. Griffiths

Steve Saideman @smsaideman.bsky.social · Aug 17

Just started reading The Disunited States by Ryan Griffiths (for an APSA roundtable) about the potential for secession in the US the same day South Carolina troops may be headed to DC.
I don't like this timing.

2 1 12

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · Aug 11

Thank you so much for the interest!

1

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · Aug 11

Wonderful talk with Daniel Moran at New Books Network about The Disunited States.
Here's the link to the podcast: newbooksnetwork.com/the-disunite...

Ryan Griffiths, "The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won't Work" (Oxford UP, 2025) - New Books Network

newbooksnetwork.com

2

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · Aug 10

One takeaway is that there are recurring patterns to how precolonial states ruled over space, independent of the geographic setting.

1 2

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · Jul 23

Thanks to Kirkus for reviewing my book, The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won't Work.
www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews...

THE DISUNITED STATES | Kirkus Reviews

An exploration of the possibility that the U.S. could disintegrate along ideological lines.

www.kirkusreviews.com

1 6

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · Jun 30

www.maxwell.syr.edu/research/art...

The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won't Work

Written by Professor of Political Science Ryan Griffiths

www.maxwell.syr.edu

3

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · Jun 19

Nice to finally have this in hand!

3 3 10

Reposted by Ryan D. Griffiths

Seva @seva.bsky.social · Jun 18

How do shocks to the global system shape state creation? New article with @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social & @kyungwon.bsky.social. We argue that global crises create waves of new secession movements, but also doom them to failure after the crisis passes. [open access] www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

3 9 47

Reposted by Ryan D. Griffiths

Lijphart @lijphart.bsky.social · May 25

In your local arthouse cinema !!

The doc 'The Promise' about the betrayal of the West Papuans in their independence strife is a must-see.

(dodgy roles for the Netherlands and the US)

@freewestpapua.nl @unpointl.bsky.social @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social

www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_Mi...

The Promise - Official International Trailer | West Papua Documentary 2025 [Eng Sub]

YouTube video by Free West Papua Campaign (Nederland)

www.youtube.com

1

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · May 25

Thank you!

1

Reposted by Ryan D. Griffiths

Seva @seva.bsky.social · May 20

what does trump's foreign policy mean for separatists and secession movements around the world? our new piece with @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social argues breakaway regions could find new opportunities but also a lot more risks
www.foreignaffairs.com/world/new-pr...

The New Price of Statehood

Trump is a mixed blessing for the world’s separatists.

www.foreignaffairs.com

2 7 23

Reposted by Ryan D. Griffiths

Steve Saideman @smsaideman.bsky.social · May 7

Really jazzed about the company we are in www.sup.org/books/politi... @plagasse.bsky.social, Dave Auerswald, and I have been proofing the past few months, so this is starting to get real.

Book cover for Overseen or Overlooked? Legislators, Armed Forces, and Democratic Accountability
by David P. Auerswald, Philippe Lagassé, and me

1 2 18

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · May 6

Thanks Karlo!

Ryan D. Griffiths @ryan-griffiths.bsky.social · May 6

Happy to see this special issue on Rebel Governance (Legitimacy and Control) in print. Thanks to the International Politics team and all the terrific people who contributed to these articles. link.springer.com/journal/4131...

International Politics

International Politics publishes innovative scholarship on international relations with a focus on the struggle between states for power in international ...

link.springer.com

2 7