Why Citizenship is not a spectator sport

Its 2020, an election year where nothing could ever be the same again, we are in the middle of a pandemic, where no one can leave their houses unless they need too. With so many uncertainties heading into the 2020 Presidential election in November, voters are lost on who to vote for, as since the …

Citizenship is not like Football – It is not a Spectator Sport

Photo by Arnaud Jaegers on Unsplash Mia Len What is Citizenship? Football - America's greatest pastime. Key word: pastime. Citizenship (the position or status of being a citizen of a particular country), on the other hand, is far from a pastime. In fact, it is the opposite and more. Contrary to what seems to be popular belief, citizenship …

How Social Capital Has Become A Tool For The Privileged

Social capital refers to how much an individual is connected to others, and the networks which those connections can create. At its best, social capital is one of the most important building blocks of society and democracy. However, it is much more easily gained and used for those who live in privileged communities than for …

The Importance of Civic Education

During my senior year of high school, I travelled to Washington, D.C. with a group of students from my AP Government class to compete in that year's national We The People competition put on by the Center for Civic Education. In the competition, we participated in simulated congressional hearings where we would deliver prepared statements …

Biden’s Future

It’s really eye-opening when you see any organization completely throw everything they claim to believe out the window, especially when they gain nothing from it, this is what the DNC did by electing Joe Biden as the Democratic nominee. In the past four years, there have been endless condemnations of President Donald Trump’s record from …

Rethinking broadcast news

Source: Jahaura Wilson, WordPress At 6pm on any given day on the ABC-affiliate WCVB/Boston, the following thirty minutes have nearly the same structure: within the first fifteen minutes, reporters cover an average of six stories, typically about house fires, car crashes, drug-busts. After a commercial break, the news anchors jump into the lead story, maybe …

How the Boy Scouts of America Emphasize Civic Engagement – Food for Thought

Why do we become civically engaged? What purpose do we serve in our own communities, and where does this purpose come from? These are some of the questions that are discussed in Robert Putnam's landmark bestseller Bowling Alone. On page 337, he uses a quote from Alexis de Tocqueville, which reads "it is difficult to …

Asian-American Experience Amid The COVID-19 Pandemic

Life has changed for nearly all Americans over the past month. As the number of infected Coronavirus victims in the U.S. rises to over 140,000 with over 2,400 deaths, most Americans are committing to social distancing and self-quarantine. It appears as though the majority of people understand the potential danger of ignoring this crisis, and …

“Let’s put it this way,” Mr. Trump said. “I’m not concerned.”

"Fake News!" Words we've heard hundreds of times before from the lips of our President, Donald Trump. Not long ago, he was quick to declare the now world-altering pandemic just another case of fake-news. Only about one month later, Trump now finds himself watching hundreds of Americans drop dead, millions loose their job, the economy …

The Proliferation of Late Night Comedy and News: Entertainment vs. Information

Twenty years ago, entertainment and news, at least on a mainstream level, were two very different industries. There were small examples, like the weekend updates on SNL that infused comedy with very few, specifically chosen news stories, but it wasn't until John Stewart and The Daily Show took off that other programs took notice. When …