You know what this country needs? was answered by Thomas Marshall, President Woodrow Wilson’s Vice President. He said, “a good five-cent cigar.” Kamala Harris would not answer the question the same way nor would most people today…at least I think not. But I do have an answer, my answer. What this country needs is a return to the study of Civics in Middle Schools to begin with, then a more advanced Civics class in High School.
I thought of this for years, but it came to light when I heard a TED talk by the late Lord Rabbi Jonathan Sacks who died on November 7th. Rabbi Sacks was Chief Rabbi of Great Britain in the ‘90s until 2013. The bottom line of his talk which he delivered around the 2016 elections is that we have to go from a “me” oriented Western world to an “us” oriented one. How much the more so today!
A Civics curriculum would hopefully teach young Americans about democracy and about their role in democracy. It would teach them – no, it would teach “us” inasmuch as Civics hasn’t been taught for decades – that, as Rabbi Sacks said, “We, the People” are the most important words to keep us focused on progress and cooperation in a world torn by divisiveness. What do our children know about the Constitution? What do they know about government? They vote in droves for America’s Got Talent and Dancing with the Stars, but perhaps aside from this year’s election, they religiously stay away from the voting booth (or mail-in or absentee or whatever options there are).
A Civics curriculum could, maybe, perhaps, hopefully, give young Americans a sense of the uniqueness of our founding and our history, our ideals (yes, our ideals), and the meaning of the Fourth of July, other than major sales. Someone told me recently that a relative thought that the White House was in Washington…not D.C. but Washington State! And this apparently was someone who was relatively bright. Sadly, it doesn’t surprise me, nor do I believe it surprises you.
We cannot blame our youth for their ignorance when they haven’t been taught. It’s like the demise of cursive/script writing being taught in schools. Just because texting, etc. has virtually “eliminated” the need for script writing doesn’t mean they shouldn’t learn how to do it. Well, just because some educators think there are better alternatives to Civics doesn’t mean they are correct! And if I were Secretary of Education (even I would be better than the incumbent), I’d mandate Civics curricula in all the country’s schools.
Is there a Jewish connection to all of this? Of course, there is! In Pirkei Avot, we read “Pray for the welfare of the government, for were it not for the fear it inspires, everyone would swallow one’s neighbor alive.” And elsewhere in Pirkei Avot, “Be cautious with the government, for they only bring a person close to them for their own needs. They appear as friends when it benefits them, but they do not stand by a person in his time of difficulty.”
Now could I make that up? No, it’s in there. My point is that every American should know what their connection to the government is and teaching Civics is one way of doing so. And while you’re studying Civics appreciate as well the ever-relevant learning one gets from Jewish sources. And note, this was written before there ever was a U.S.A….. “and the beat goes on.”