Civics in Action - Local Constitutional Issue

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

How valuable are our First Amendment rights to us? I saw both sides as I watched the progress of debate over a Constitutional issue that occurred right here in the county seat of Citrus County.

Background: On July 3rd the City of Inverness hosted an Independence Day celebration with entertainment and fireworks at the city-owned Liberty Park. It was designated as a public event, starting at 6:30 PM.

At least three local pastors with members of their congregation went to the park – arriving around 4 PM - to distribute tracts to those interested in taking them, with the intent of stopping when the formal activities began at 6:30. This was not a collaborative planned effort by the pastors – each went independently from the others.

A Sheriff’s deputy ordered one of the pastors - Pastor Sheppard, pastor of Citrus Baptist Missionary Church, to stop preaching and distributing tracts. Sheppard stated that it was a public event, public property, and that he was allowed by the Constitution of the United States to do so.

Contradictory advice was given by other deputies stationed in the park as to the legality of preaching and passing out tracts prior to the scheduled City activities, so Sheppard continued preaching and handing out tracts.

The deputy came by later and again ordered him to stop, threatening arrest for trespassing, and then ordered him out of the park. Later he ordered the pastor’s wife and 5 children (ages between 1 and 8) from the park for creating what he termed “a religious compound” (a child’s wagon with two Scripture verses on it) – perhaps a reference to the Branch Dividians?

Sheppard left, and began preaching and distributing tracts on the public right-of-way outside of the park. The deputy came again and ordered the pastor to stop. Sheppard refused, citing his Constitutional rights, pointing that he was outside of the park, on a public right-of-way. The deputy left, and later brought back the Park Director, who told the pastor that he could not preach or distribute tracts in the park – it was against a city ordinance. Pastor Sheppard pointed out again that he was no longer in the park, but on a public right-of-way, and that the park director’s stance was unconstitutional.

Another pastor – Pastor Stine of Bethel Baptist Church - arrived, and was informed that he could not preach or distribute tracts in the park either. Stine had been doing this at the Independence Day event for several years, and was surprised at the restriction. He also wound up distributing tracts outside of the park.

The tracts were simply offered to people and not forced upon them, and all preaching was done by voice only, without the assistance of any electronic amplifiers.

The Process:

The issue was brought before the Inverness City Council at their regularly scheduled meeting July 21st. Their agenda provided time for Sheppard to speak, and contains letters between Sheppard and the Inverness city manager, Frank DiGiovanni, requesting time to address the City Council, as well as a letter from a law firm reiterating the legal protections found under the First Amendment.

Over seventy people attended the meeting – the majority to provide support for the pastor’s cause. Pastor Sheppard presented his case, including a listing of some city ordinances that were in conflict with county, state, and federal law. He also pointed out that the Sheriff’s Department had never harassed him before, but that his concern was that there was inconsistency in the laws of the city affecting public speaking, as well as a lack of training to so officers could provide a consistent answer to question relating to citizen rights.

Sheppard pointed out the incongruousness of the issue: the restriction of his rights occurred at Liberty Park, celebrating Independence Day.

The city attorney commented that some of the ordinances were of ‘dubious constitutionality’ and that he and the city manager planned to rewrite the city code. The Council was attentive and supportive in its statements – but deferred any decisions until the codes are rewritten.

The Concern:

They are two-fold:

One: What is the concern of the citizenry for maintaining their rights? The quote by Martin Niemoller, the pastor of a Protestant congregation in Germany who was imprisoned in a concentration camp during the reign of Adolf Hitler, comes to mind:

They came after the Jews,
But I was not a Jew, so I did not object.
Then they came after the Catholics,
But I was not a Catholic, so I did not object.
Then they came after the Trade Unionists,
But I was not a Trade Unionist, so I did not object.
Then they came after me,
And there was no one left to object.

While the clear majority of those at the City Council meeting were concerned and supportive, two thoughts come to mind:

-One lady – after Pastor Sheppard finished speaking and another gentleman asked if he could address the Council on the issue – whispered to her husband ‘Isn’t this ever going to end’, then proceeded to focus her attention on a grocery sales receipt for the next ten minutes. She was attending the City Council meeting for another agenda item.

-Where were the other pastors, deacons, church members of the area? Is this not a concern of theirs as well? Yet only two or three pastors came, and perhaps forty church members.

Two: Unlimited and unregulated power for any agency will result in the loss of rights and legal protection. I’m a strong supporter of law-enforcement and the work our officers do – but they are not always right, and some of them need to recognize that fact. Stubbornness, prejudice, and rash action took place over consideration of the rights and intent of the law – by those who should be enforcing it. My hat is off to the City Council for their attention and thoughts on the matter, and to the city attorney for his honest evaluation of the pertinent city ordinances and code, and to pastors Sheppard and Stine - as well as the other speakers - who were willing to defend their rights.

The story isn’t finished yet, and a final resolution hasn’t been reached. Only time will tell the final direction that this Civics in Action lesson will take.

Hopefully everyone will learn about the Constitution a little better than the person in this video clip.

As John Adams stated:

"But a Constitution of Government once changed from Freedom, can never be restored. Liberty, once lost, is lost forever.”

Essential Question: How can a local incident like this be used to teach civic rights and responsibilities to our students?

PHOTO RESOURCE:

Bill of Rights

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Citrus County TEA Party

On April 18, 2009, Citrus County joined with numerous other sites across the United States and held a TEA Party at the old Courthouse. Over 1,000 citizens came to voice their protest on what they perceive as reckless spending and the cost of increasing taxes - local, state, and Federal - as well as a more drastic move toward creating a socialist state.

Here is a YouTube summary of the event. Civics in Action!

Essential Question: What rights listed under the Bill of Rights were the citizens exercising during the TEA Party?

A Civics Question from the Past Still Relevant Today

My hobby is collecting old time radio shows (OTR). Recently I was listening to the March 18, 1939 broadcast of Information Please, hosted by Clifton Fadiman. The show has a panel of four noted and wise individuals, and the premise of the show is that it gives the public a chance to stump the experts.

These experts, including regulars such as writer, actor, pianist Oscar Levant as well as newspaper editor, columnist and intellectual Franklin P. Adams and sports columnist and intellectual John Kieran, along with guests such as playwright Moss Hart and mystery author Rex Stout (who created the fictional crime fighter Nero Wolfe) who would field an amazing array of questions, and – in the midst of fun and entertainment – answer a significant number of them correctly. After all, they were the experts.

One that stumped three of the four of the very intelligent members in the March 18th episode was one that every American should know.

Having said that, I need to come down off of my high horse and admit that I did not know the complete answer either.

Can you, without using outside resources, answer this question from the show?

From Information Please, 3/28/1939: This question has three parts.

1. Name of your Congressman.

2. Name the Congressional District you live in.

3. Name your Congressman’s political party.

What is yours?

If you are stumped on the complete answer, as I was, check here.

Essential Question: Why is political awareness a valuable and essential attibute for American citizens to have?

PHOTO RESOURCE:

Information Please Panel, from Old Time Radio Catalog.

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60 Second Civics

A great tool for all Social Studies classes just came into my work-email. From the Center for Civics Education ’60-Second Civics” webpage:

“60-Second Civics is a daily podcast that provides a quick and convenient way for listeners to learn about our nation’s government, the Constitution, and our history. The podcast explores themes related to civics and government, the constitutional issues behind the headlines, and the people and ideas that formed our nation’s history and government.

60-Second Civics is produced by the Center for Civic Education. The show's content is primarily derived from the Center’s education for democracy curricula, including We the People: The Citizen & the Constitution, Project Citizen, Foundations of Democracy, and Elements of Democracy.”

The site also provides a short daily quiz, dealing with a topic discussed in the daily podcast. There are also links to past podcasts, as well as downloading capability so you can utilize the podcasts in the classroom – or if you are really dedicated, on your iPod! The first episode, “What is 60-Second Civics? [Play] In this episode, host Kaci Patterson introduces 60-Second Civics, the Center for Civic Education's new daily podcast about civics and government” is located here.

So, plug in the speakers, turn up the volume, and listen to this daily.

Essential Question: How could a daily podcast be best utilized on a regular basis in the Social Studies Classroom.

PHOTO RESOURCE:

George Washington: Father of Our Country

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America 101 and Civics Education

Democracy: A Journal of Ideas, in the Fall 2008 edition, had an article by Eric Lane titled "America 101". The header of the article states "How we let civic education slide—and why we need a crash course in the Constitution today."

The concept of Civics education is currently being touted as a high need for our students - a basic understanding of the Consntitution, the Amendments, the way government is structured, and the duty of the citizens under that government.

This is an interesting article, which you can read in its entirety here. I hope you take the opportunity to peruse it's eleven pages.

However, ALL of the Social Studies are in need of a revamping and a heightened interest. Yes, Civics is important, vital even. But so is the knowledge of American History and the history of the World we live in. So is the study of economics and personal finance. So is the study of geography and geographic awareness of nations and cultures. So is a myriad of other Social Studies content areas.

The state has focused on math, reading, and writing - and sort of science. Those are fine. But citizens cannot function in a nation-state with only intellectual knowledge unconnected to their past - a past presented in an unbiased manner, whether politically correct or not. Our legislators - both at the state and national levels - need to realize, accept, and support this.

Yes, we need to support increased interest - and funding - for the study and application of civics. But we need to do the same with the other areas of the Social Studies if we want to have a nation of citizens who understand where they came from historically, and how to survive economically.

Of course, maybe we have to start thinking of how we are teaching it as well.

Essential Question: What strategies can be used to enhance Social Studies education in our schools and our lives?

Legislative Updates

There are two bills – one in the Florida legislature, the other in the National Congress – pertaining to our field of Social Studies, more specifically American History and Civics. I would encourage you to take a few moments and visit the sites indicated for further information on the bills.

The Florida Legislature House Bill 13 is in PreK-12 Appropriations Committee. Titled Middle School Civics Education Assessment, this bill “provides requirements for civics education course that student must successfully complete for middle grades promotion beginning with students entering grade 6 in 2011-2012 school; requires administration of end-of-course assessment in civics education as field test at middle school level during 2011-2012 school year; provides requirements for course grade & course credit for subsequent school years; requires inclusion of civics education end-of-course assessment data in determining school grades beginning with 2012-2013 school year." For more information on this bill, or to follow its progress (or lack of it) through this legislative session, click here.

To keep up on a variety of issues in the Florida Legislature that concerns educators, and especially Social Studies instructors, bookmark the FCSS (Florida Council of Social Studies) and FASSS (Florida Association of Social Studies Supervisors) blog.

The US Senate bill S659 - titled Improving the Teaching and Learning of American History and Civics Act of 2009 - was proposed by Senators Kennedy, Byrd, and Alexander, and would consolidate many effective civic and historical programs and allocates funds to strengthen the upcoming 2010 NAEP assessment. It places an emphasis teaching American History and Civics in the public schools, and would seek to provide monies for training of teachers in these areas. For more information on this bill, or to follow its progress (or lack of it) through this legislative session, click here.

For Senator Alexander’s speech concerning this bill and the state of the study of American History and Civics, click here.

Will these bills become law? Hard to tell, with the economic cutbacks we’re facing. Right now it looks like Citrus County will face another five to eight million dollars in cutbacks from the monies received from the state. It is the fourth year in a row Civics-specific legislation has been proposed in the US Congress, and the umpteenth time in a row for the State legislature.

A wonderful book that I think all of our Congressmen should read is It Can’t Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis (written in 1935) in which the country moves into a dictatorship for a variety of reasons. I haven’t read it since before most of you were born (I think it was in 1971) – but it was outstanding. The book serves as a warning that political movements akin to Nazism can come to power in countries such as the United States when people blindly support their leaders – and are unaware of their history or civic responsibilities. For a free online edition, click here.

Essential Question: How can students be encouraged to find and use information on bills that concern their future?

A New Constitutional Convention?

On December 10th of this year one of the ‘lists’ that I read had a comment on the fact that we were two states away from the US Congress being forced to call a Constitutional Convention in order to propose Amendments to the US Constitution – or what the current day lingo calls a Con Con. A vote was to be held by the Ohio legislature, which – if successful – would leave only one state left to apply for a Convention before that Convention became a reality.

At first the significance of this escaped me – as did finding much written literature on the subject. But, through perseverance, the following discoveries were made:

Article V of the Constitution provides for two methods of amending the Constitution. 1) The US Congress proposes, and 3/4th of the States have to approve the proposed amendment before it goes into effect; and 2) when 2/3rd of the States (34) apply to Congress for a Con Con. This latter method has never been used, and a number of questions arise about it.

While many of the applications for a Con Con have centered on creating an amendment for a balanced Federal budget, Article V does not limit what the Con Con – if called - could propose in the form of amendments. Chief Justice Warren Burger wrote:

“I have also repeatedly given my opinion that there is no effective way to limit or muzzle the actions of a Constitutional Convention. The convention could make its own rules and set its own agenda. Congress might try to limit the convention to one amendment or to one issue, but there is no way to assure that the convention would obey. After a convention is convened, it will be too late to stop the convention if we don't like its agenda. The meeting in 1787 ignored the limit placed by the confederation Congress "for the sole and express purpose."”

That is one of many questions that arise about a Con Con.

Some resources to enlighten the reader/listener:
-A number of concerns are summed up in a short You Tube presentation proportedly addressed to State legislators.
-One source did provide some interesting FAQ’s on a Con-Con.
-An article from the Daily Herald (Utah) concerning a Convention.

Things I don’t know, but would like to:

-How long is an application valid?
-What states have approved (and tried to rescind) their applications for a Con-Con?
-Why can’t a state rescind (as apparently some have done) their application?
-How often have the states neared the magic number for a Con Con occurred?
-What would a Con-Con really look like?
-Why isn’t this concept surfacing in the mainstream media?
-Why am I so clueless about this?

The Constitution Rights Foundation has an interesting lesson plan for the Convention process that could be used in the classroom.

Essential Question: What do you think would be the effects of a Constitutional Convention to provide amendments to the Constitution?

Americans Failing Civics

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."

- Thomas Jefferson, 1743 - 1826

The Intercollegiate Studies Institute has just released the results from its third major study on civics learning among college students. Each year over 14,000 students (Freshmen and Seniors) from 50 colleges participate in the survey. This years' survey was titled Our Fading Heritage: Americans Fail a Basic Test on Their History and Institutions.

Given the state of civics education in K-12 public schools as well as the lack of attention to civics and/or social studies in America's college and university system, the results of the survey are not surprising. A few items from the report: The average score was 49%. Only .8% had an “A” (90% +) as a result on the survey, while 71% had a failing score of 59% and below. Politicians scored lower on almost every question of the survey than the general public, with an average score of 45%. Fewer than half of all Americans can name all three branches of government.

Another unsurprising discovery:

“ISI examined whether other factors add to or subtract from civic literacy and
how they compare with the impact of college. The survey revealed that in today’s
technological age, all else remaining equal, a person’s test score drops in proportion to the time he or she spends using certain types of passive electronic media. Talking on the phone, watching owned or rented movies, and monitoring TV news broadcasts and documentaries diminish a respondent’s civic literacy.”

From the summary of the ISI report:

“After all the time, effort, and money spent on college, students emerge no
better off in understanding the fundamental features of American
self-government.”

To view the complete report visit Our Fading Heritage

Take a quiz of 33 questions click QUIZ:

By the way: I had 31 correct. How did you do???

Essential question: How do the results of this survey impact what we do in our classrooms?