On November 9, 2016, millions of people watched in disbelief as the words “Donald Trump elected President of the United States” flashed before their eyes. Their worst nightmare had come true. Trump's victory constitutes one of the most shocking events in American political history. Less than five months earlier, the United Kingdom stunned the world by voting to leave the European Union, a decision billed as "Brexit." This surprising sequence of events is not limited to the West. The Philippines recently elected Rodrigo Duterte, nicknamed the "Trump of the East", who promised to get tough on crime and, shortly after his election, was denounced by several human rights organizations for ignoring the state of law. There are countless other examples, from Syriza, the left-wing party currently in power in Greece, to the National Front in France. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Make no mistake: These shocking events are not isolated incidents. They are part of a new movement that is increasingly becoming the norm shaping the global order: populism. What is populism? Fareed Zakaria writes in the November/December 2016 issue of Foreign Affairs Magazine that the definition of the term is subjective but implies suspicion and hostility toward elites, mainstream politics, and established institutions. He says populism sees itself as the spokesperson for the forgotten “ordinary” person and often imagines itself as the voice of true patriotism. The roots of populism go back to globalization. The application of intergovernmentalist ideals has kept entire continents in relative peace in recent decades. However, recent events have sparked a wave of anti-establishment protests that threaten to destroy the system. First, the Syrian refugee crisis has raised fears that terrorists will enter neighboring countries as refugees. The civil war in Syria has displaced more than 4.8 million refugees worldwide. Neighboring European countries, such as Turkey, have been disproportionately burdened with the task of accepting these refugees. This has led to an increase in anti-immigration sentiments, particularly with an increase in terrorist attacks in countries considered safe, such as France. Trump was able to use this sentiment to his advantage as one of his main arguments during the 2016 presidential campaign. Many Americans approved of his plan to tighten borders to prevent potential terrorists from entering the country. Nigel Farage, the former leader of the UK Independence Party who led the UK to vote for Brexit, claimed that leaving the UK would ensure the UK was in a better position in terms of welcoming immigrants. Many citizens feel uncomfortable around these immigrants and look to these anti-immigration candidates for a sense of security. The economy is also performing poorly. The world is still reeling from the effects of the Great Recession. The crisis is one of the negative consequences of the omnipresent nature of globalization. A recession in a single country could easily lead to a global financial crisis. This is perhaps one of the main reasons why the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. With Greece bankrupt, neighboring EU countries had to bail out the country to avoid a new crisis. Many citizens thought this was unfair and believed that leaving the EU would free them from this.