People's Civics

In March, we began offering a People’s Civics class at the local library. Over a dozen people from the community have joined us, in addition to our core group. We thought we’d be covering typical topics in government: branches of government, town agencies, voting, etc.

As our discussions went on, there was a shift. What we truly needed was a study in power and collective bodies. Who has power over us? What laws (government and otherwise) shape our reality? What power do we have to influence them back? The state is only one organization that is made up of multiple people and acts on our lives. It is not the only and inevitable body of power.

This thought has really been bugging me. As a long-time Social Studies teacher, I have a go-to curriculum. And the underlying story in my curriculum:

• Humans used to fight over borders and resources until this one stable government emerged. (Imagine competing warlords and empires putting their weapons down in favor of a democratic republic.)

• There is a linear progression from chaos to order, with continual improvements.

• The US government is the only authority you need to learn about in school.

I have found this to be true of traditional and progressive schools, different teaching philosophies, across a range of US states. We never point out the fact that…government is not the only and inevitable body of power.

Still not sure what I mean? Imagine that you paid your taxes to a Buddhist temple. Or that your neighborhood association was responsible for operating a school. Or that when you behaved recklessly, you’d have to answer to a troop of Girl Scouts.

The truth is, we are part of multiple collectives at any given moment: families, religious organizations, civic organizations, mutual aid networks, clubs, and less formal groups such as neighborhoods and diaspora in addition to local, state, and federal government. All of these collectives have values and rules that we may live by. And they have resources to leverage.

Do we need to learn about the current government in place? Of course. But we must always remember that we can meet group needs within and without the state. We mustn’t think, “Well, I wrote a letter to my representative, and now I wait, because they’re the only one who can solve the problem.” We will never think outside of the box to solve the many pressing issues of the present moment. And we will give up all of our power.

May we all hold onto our power, especially our young people.