One overlooked value of mass protests: a nationwide civics education

 In the words of the founders of Indivisible, they see their purpose as a  "Coming together in community to process what’s happening, to sift through what’s important and what’s just noise, and coalesce around strategies for fighting back. "   

Update: 6/23/25: This is a response I gave to those who shamed those who protested...as "what is best for our country is to support our president and our country," on June 14. Indivisible was one of the major organizations.

To confuse allegiance to our country with allegiance to Trump is what the difference is between democracy and dictatorship. Our country, right or wrong, is fine, but not when he is a president that his followers support and are so loyal to him that whatever he says or does is right to them, and those who dare criticize and protest are always wrong and disloyal to America. That is an attitude that is held by those who do not support the kind of democracy we have had for 250 years.

I pledge allegiance ot the flag and the republic for which it stands; I do not pledge allegiance to a president, whoever is in the Oval Office. I have the right to be free to praise or object without being called disloyal to the US.

Political loyalty and ideological loyalty are distinct matters that shape how individuals with diverse viewpoints are motivated to act or agree in speech and thought. Different opinions are permitted (and protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution) in a democracy, but not in an autocracy where dissent to the leader/president is considered disloyal to the nation, and is worthy of suppression and persecution. Do not confuse political loyalty with loyalty to the country in our democracy. They are not the same. Those who want a country where dissent against their choice to be a president is called disloyalty to their country are ideologically not pro democracy but for autocracy (rule of a king or a dictator). One cannot be both for democracy and autocracy at the same time: they are opposites in the most simplistic definition. One is for the rule of the people, and the other is rule by one person.

Rule means who controls what laws are devised, interpreted, and executed. Ours is a republic that elects those to government power who represent the people they choose through free and open elections. Government power is limited or delegated by a constitution, which government officials and the military are sworn to protect and defend.

We as a nation need a refresher course in civics, and we are getting one.https://mufticforumblog.blogspot.com/2025/04/we-are-in-midst-of-education-in-civics.html

One overlooked value of mass protests: a nationwide civics education

 The " sifting through" I see as not only consensus builiding for a pro democracy movement within communities, it is also an education in civics for the whole nation about the value of the kind of democracy we have had fo 250 years in contrast with the opposition movement personified by the Trump administration to turn the US into an autocracy. It at least should raise curiosity among those who do not yet get the "how and why "democracy is under attack, and why that is a bad thing.  

This protect democracy movement differs from some pro-democracy movements elsewhere in the world whose goals are to unseat a dictatorship. This movement's purpose, as I see it, is to keep the democracy we have now from being turned into an autocracy (king, dictatorship). The strategies for fighting back employed by groups like Invisible and 50501 are rooted in the traditions of Gandhi and Martin Luther King

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Fascism is shaping youth to believe in the leader's ideology: it's happening : Update 8/1/2025

Now one of Trump's top advisors only wants funds to go to educating kids who reflect his view of democracy. Stephen Miller claims that children are being taught to be 'communist' in schools. What's communist about it?|Spell it out. He did. Communism is woke culture. (So that means diversity, equity, and inclusion are communist?. Dang...and I thought they were Christian concepts. ) Pope Leo XIV may have some ideas about this, too. 'Our new woke pope': Newly minted pontiff’s post slamming JD Vance lights up social media

Removal of Trump From Smithsonian Impeachment Exhibit Sparks Outrage - Newsweek Rewriting history to make the dear leader look flawless is the stuff China and other doctorship run countries use to control the thought of their subjects. That Trump was impeached twice is now removed from the Smithsolnian museum.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/05/22/oklahoma-schools-teach-2020-election-big-lie-trump/83731606007/ This is not civics ; this is brain washing. of children. It is what is done in communist and fascist dictatorships. There is a good reason Okahoma education ranks 49th in the nation and is such a ruby red state. There is a correlation.

How about teaching kids American history and why we have a separation of powers, the Bill of Rights to protect us from an overreaching and abusive federal government, and protect the civil rights of all of us, and how we fought fascist ideas and their methods in World War II.

Update 5/14/2025 Here is a problem, however, if whatever civic education is required nationally, the contents can be controlled to suit whatever party or wannabe dictator is in charge of the Department of Education, or whatever parts of the federal government have the power to set policy. One way to deal with that is to tie the exam or course contents to the citizenship test required in the naturalization process as part of any enabling or funding legislation. One problem is that civics is no longer part of achievement testing scores, so it is no longer emphasized in our education system. A passing grade in civics, tied to the citizenship test, should be required for graduation from high school.

If anything, Miller's contribution to the Trump regime is his anti-immigrant stance, including using the cruelty of family separation as a tool and in deporting immigrants without due process. He is viewed as an extremist in these sensitive matters. Given his anti-immigrant reputation, I doubt if the Bill of Rights and the civil rights-related amendments would be high on his required list of curriculum topics. The Southern Poverty Law Center tags him as an extremist.https://www.splcenter.org/resources/extremist-files/stephen-miller/.

Per Google AI  "in rankings related to K-12 education, Oklahoma generally performs poorly, often being ranked near the bottom. Specifically, U.S. News & World Report and The Annie E. Casey Foundation's Kids Count report place Oklahoma 48th and 49th respectively in education. WalletHub's study also ranks Oklahoma as having one of the worst public school education systems. "

irishstar.com

Stephen Miller claims children are being taught to be 'communist' in schools

The White House Chief of Staff of Policy, Stephen Miller, proclaimed early Thursday morning that Donald Trump's administration will focus on teaching children to love the U.S. rather than the alleged communist agenda that's being pushed in school

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MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: As a country we sorely need an education in civics and the Abrego Garcia case is an opportunity.

MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: How do you know if the Trump regime is already a fascist government Take the test

irishstar.com

Stephen Miller claims children are being taught to be 'communist' in schools

The White House Chief of Staff of Policy, Stephen Miller, proclaimed early Thursday morning that Donald Trump's administration will focus on teaching children to love the U.S. rather than the alleged communist agenda that's being pushed in school

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Why the GOP is losing older voters. Six good reasons.

Update: 4 8 2024     Let me add one more reason seniors are switching to Biden. It is a generational change, per this piece in the New York Times. My generation, the silent one, has died off, with only 20 percent of us still living (the good news, bad news for me). Instead, it has been replaced by the All in the Family generation, disillusioned with the lies told us about Vietnam and the bigotry and xenophobia exposed in this classic TV sitcom. The silent generation grew up with radio; the one now coming of old age had the visuals of TV with the impact much more visceral than movie newsreels, photos, and just voices. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/04/06/upshot/older-voters.html

Continuing with the original post:

Aside from the GOP hurling constant insults at Biden for his age (seniors know people's brains age at different rates, and so do their bodies), there is a reason why voters are showing a preference for Biden in a recent Q poll in Pennsylvania. and other polls dating to 2020. As an older person myself and with adult children and their spouses approaching or arriving at 65 years old, let me give six good reasons besides the GOP insulting Biden's age and abilities just because he is 3 years older than Trump. 

  1) We lived long enough to remember what it was like before Roe v Wade and the days when women could not apply for credit without their husband's approval or any political statements made by women in media or in politics were considered not credible because they came from a woman's emotional brain.  Age brings memories of when it was worse.

 2) We lived through Vietnam and the Cold War to see BS when we heard it as BS and to question BS and see Putin and China as the same adversaries as before: all about power, just without the ideology of Marxism as the reason. We understand how dictatorships, communists, fascists, or whatever work and what political freedoms mean.  Age brings wisdom.

 3) W got a good education in civics and American history which the younger generation did not get.'National Survey Finds Just 1 in 3 Americans Would Pass Citizenship Test - Institute for Citizens & Scholars (citizensandscholars.org)

 4) Moral leadership still has value, and Trump is not a moral person. P grabbing and infidelity are not moral.  Lies, in the face of fact and data, are not moral either. There is still something credible about data and evidence.  Age brings us memories of higher moral standards.

5) Civil rights and tolerance of others are a moral value and worth the struggle of the movement. Many old people have moved on to more tolerance on the basis of fairness and acceptance of diversity within their own families and in the workplace, sports, and military service. We remember the violence of the resistance to the civil rights movement...Age brings with it real-life experience.

 6) Policies that take away access and qualifications to Medicare and Social Security are a threat to old people's well-being. Every time the GOP advocates to "save" those programs by cutting access to them, seniors revolt and ask why not give them taxpayer support instead. Obamacare is a bridge to give affordable access to health care until those over 50 with aging bodies and health problems are not yet eligible for Medicare. Hands of Obamacare, GOP.   Aging has special needs, and the government can help meet them. 

Why older voters have stuck with Biden more than younger generations | CNN Politics

Older voters flee Trump, solidifying Biden's advantage in the 2020 race (nbcnews.com)

Biden's old guy advantage with older voters - POLITICO

Forgotten Purpose: Civics Education in Public Schools | NEA

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/americans-oppose-most-trump-policies/ar-AA1mPgWu?ocid=socialshare&pc=DCTS&cvid=b1985bfa8fa14970849a5b58c9d57617&ei=18

https://www.newsweek.com/social-security-changes-planned-if-nikki-haley-wins-election-1859696 

Number of Voters as a Share of the Voter Population, by Age | KFF

        This demographic of voters over 65 is the second largest group of those who vote...a close second to the 45-64 group.  To ignore this group is a political miscalculation.and malpractice.

FACT: Nikki Haley Is Coming After Social Security and Medicare - Democrats