The transnational impacts of American discrimination against minorities: Evidence from survey experiments in democracies

What is the impact of prominent violations of international norms on support for those norms around the world? Recent studies have shown that American human rights violations may strengthen those norms in authoritarian states, but we know little about the impacts in democratic contexts, especially in cases where the norm and its violations are highly salient. Using a survey experiment in India, I find that exposure to news about American discrimination against minorities significantly reduces Indian public support for minority rights norms and concerns about the state of minority rights at home. Paired survey experiments in the United Kingdom show that when minority rights are less salient, exposure to American discrimination increases concerns around minority rights, but has no impact when they are more salient. The study demonstrates that high-profile violations of international norms may have polarizing impacts on support for those norms around the world.