The Price of Democracy

The words "These are the times that try men's souls," are as applicable today as they were when Thomas Paine wrote them in his day. Lives are still being sacrificed in behalf of democracy as we were so poignantly reminded yesterday with the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan.

The price of democracy has always been high. All fifty-six men, men of means and well-educated, who signed the Declaration of Independence knew full well that the penalty for doing so could be death. Yet, they were willing to pledge their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor because of the value they placed on liberty and democracy. Their individual stories during the Revolutionary War reveal the ultimate sacrifices they were called upon to endure because of their commitment to this cause far beyond themselves. 1

This fight for democracy in the U. S., "a nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal," must continue as Abraham Lincoln admonishes in the Gettysburg Address during the Civil War. Lincoln continues to say in the Address, "...it is rather for us [the living] to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us--that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion--that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain--that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

We who are reaping the benefits of the sacrifices that have been made in our behalf can only pay the debt we owe by doing all in our power to preserve the freedoms we enjoy. We can do this by living the American Creed which was written by William Tyler Paige in 1917 and accepted by the United States House of Representatives on April 9, 1918:

I believe in the United States of America as a government of the people, by the people, for the people, whose just powers are derived from the consent of the governed, a democracy in a republic, a sovereign Nation of many sovereign States; a perfect union, one and inseparable; established upon those principles of freedom, equality, justice, and humanity for which American patriots sacrificed their lives and fortunes.

I therefore believe it is my duty to my country to love it, to support the Constitution, to obey its laws, to respect its flag, and to defend it against all enemies.

Both those who were born here and those who come here to reap the benefits of this great land have a responsibility to learn what has made this nation what it is, including the sacrifices that have been made, and what is required of them to repay the debt. The road will always be uphill because the ideals of this nation will always be beyond our grasp, but the journey is worth it for us and for those who will follow.

Reference
l. www.bethlehempaonline.com/signers.html

Civic Education Is An Answer

Representative LaVar Christensen in his 2006 publication for the Annual Journal of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics quotes Frederick J. Ryan, Jr.: "Freedom is a fragile thing and never more than a generation away from extinction...It must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation."

Schools are an important part of this process. "Producing better citizens" was the original justification for creating America's public schools. Christensen states in his document that education's original aim was not simply to convey knowledge but rather to forge character. Therefore, when a school's focus is exclusively on reading, math, and other academics to improve one's personal economic prosperity, something very important is lost. This is exactly what is happening in our schools, especially for our diverse learners. Yet, they are the ones who have the most to gain from civic education--the purpose of which is to develop good citizens.

According to David E. Campbell's article Bowling Together, the characteristics of an education that develops good citizens are:

1. Equip the nation's future with the capacity to be engaged in the political process
2. Have citizens not only participating in democratic institutions, but also doing so knowledgeably
3. Impart the "ability to deliberate" in a context of "mutual respect among persons" which stems from political philosopher Amy Gutmann's defining characteristic of democratic education

Of course our diverse learners need to know the academics, but focusing exclusively on academic and leaving civic education to chance is not providing them an equitable education.

Considering the recent published findings of Dr. Robert Putnam's research study that he revealed in the 2006 Johan Skytte Price Lecture called E Pluribus Unum: Diversity and Community in the Twenty-first Century, it is even more critical that all learners have the knowledge and skills to be involved. Putnam's study found that in diverse communities, there is a greater distrust of neighbors, not only between groups, but even among members of the same group. Everyone seems to "hunker down"--pull in like a turtle. They expect the worst from their community, they volunteer less, they vote less, and have less faith that their cries for social reform will make a difference. All of which results in less social capital for everyone.

Rather than responding negatively to these findings, we can look at them as a challenging opportunity. After all, it is inevitable that diversity is only going to increase in America.

So what is the answer to this challenging opportunity? Although diversity can ultimately be valuable and enriching, we also need something that will unite us. I would propose that the characteristics of an excellent civic education as they have been described have the potential to do just that.

An Alternative Thought to Ponder by Izzy Kalman

These thoghts came from the newsletter of Izzy Kalman, author of Bullies2Buddies:

Racism and Freedom of Speech
I am a strong proponent of Freedom of Speech, and demonstrate repeatedly at my seminars through role- playing that the true practice of Freedom of Speech is the solution to bullying. It even works with racial, religious, gender, and sexual-orientation harassment. I have volunteers come up and play a bigot. When I try to stop them from expressing themselves, they continue to insult me and my group, and have no respect for me or my group. When I let them say what they want and treat them with respect, they inevitably stop insulting me and my group, and come away with more respect for me and my group.
Despite the obvious positive results of these demonstrations, some participants are so locked into thinking that no one should be permitted to insult anyone's background that they continue to insist that Freedom of Speech should not be permitted for such expression. One participant wrote that forbidding racial free speech has led to "civility" among the races.
These people don't realize that all it has led to is "civility." It has not led to meaningful relationships and friendships between the races. The races still, for the most part, stick to their own kind. And there is a good explanation for this. If I have to be so worried about hurting your feelings that I can be sued for saying something you might find offensive, I would rather stay away from you. I will be pleasant to you, but I'll stick to my own kind, where I don't have to worry about being sued for offending you. Because of this fear of being prosecuted for hurting each others feelings, it prevents us from eradicating our stereotypes. Destroying stereotypes requires us to get to know each other as human beings. By avoiding each other, we continue with our stereotypes. We keep them locked up inside, but they don't go away. And we deprive ourselves of the opportunity to get to know each other as fellow human beings.
On a few occasions, people - all from Hispanic countries - said to me following my presentations, that they were so happy to hear my views. They said things like, "Here in the United States, we can't make fun of anyone. Where I come from, everybody makes fun of each other, and if you are in a social situation and nobody insults you, you feel neglected." One psychologist approached me after a seminar and said he lived half of his life in Hawaii. Hawaii, he told me, has the greatest racial mix of all fifty States, but it also has the highest percentage of interracial births. In Hawaii, he told me, all the races make fun of each other. They don't go for this "political correctness" business. They can laugh at each other, and this breaks down racial barriers, bringing people closer to each other. The subject of racism has always concerned me, and in recent months, I have been contemplating tackling it - a rather daunting task. I have been a bit reluctant to do so because it is has become such a sensitive subject that I may be setting myself up for hateful attacks. Anyway, I have decided to take on this mission. To keep myself relatively safe, I will do it by advising my own group, the Jews, rather than tell other groups what they should do. In my forthcoming newsletters, I will be presenting my approach to ending discrimination, not by curtailing Freedom of Speech, but by correctly employing it. By the way, a horrific incident occurred this week. A hunter of Asian decent killed five of his fellow hunters. He said in his defense that he was racially insulted. I'm sure that those who fight for limiting freedom of speech will capitalize on this as proof how destructive racial insults are. It is easy to forget that the insults did not do the killing. People who don't know how to tolerate insults did the killing. And rather than teaching people how to tolerate insults without getting upset, we are teaching them that they SHOULD get upset by insults; that words kill and insults should not be tolerated - particularly insults about people's group affiliation. We are thereby unwittingly increasing the likelihood that people will want to kill when they are insulted. Best wishes, Izzy Kalman