To strengthen democracy in the United States, we must understand the systems of government, politics and the media. And civics literacy is crucial if our nation is to achieve an inclusive, multiracial democracy. The resources in this series can help to develop the civic knowledge, skills and dispositions essential for responsible democratic action.
Lee Anne Bell, professor emerita at Columbia University, offers the following definitions:
- Civic knowledge entails understanding how our political system works and knowing our political and civic rights and responsibilities—such as the right to vote and run for public office and our responsibility to respect the rights and interests of others.
- Civic skills include the ability to analyze and evaluate issues so we can thoughtfully articulate and defend positions on topics that matter to us. Civic skills enable us to participate in public processes such as monitoring government performance and mobilizing with others around issues of collective concern.
- Civic dispositions—such as public-spiritedness; critical-mindedness; and the willingness to listen, learn from, negotiate and compromise with others—are the basis for participating respectfully with others as equals.
Learning, Reflecting and Action
What Are the Values of Democracy?
The ideals of democracy are at the core of our shared values and national identity. This resource examines our democratic values as a step in understanding our politics, government and country today. Learn more with LFJ’s Civics for Democracy series.
A Culture of Dialogue Is Foundational to Democracy
This learning journey summarizes key points addressing the questions: What is dialogue across difference, and how is dialogue foundational to democracy?
Why the 1965 Voting Rights Act Is Crucial for Democracy
The 1965 Voting Rights Act — a landmark federal law that removed barriers and affirmed the right to vote for millions of African Americans — remains essential for ensuring equal access to the ballot.
The Roles and Responsibilities of the President
This resource can help you understand the roles of the president, identify the powers and limits of the office, and learn how people can evaluate a president’s ability to fulfill the responsibilities of the office and hold them accountable.
Understanding the Role and Responsibilities of the Department of Education
By fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access, the Department of Education is a vital federal agency for the future of our nation.
Media Literacy Is Vital for Informed Decision-Making
Media literacy — being able to access, analyze and evaluate information for accuracy and reliability across a variety of mediums — is crucial for us to make informed decisions.
Our Votes Matter: Action Steps in Planning to Vote
This Civics for Democracy learning resource provides action steps for participating in today’s election process.
Understanding Voter Suppression in Today’s Election Process
Strategies to suppress voting continue to undermine our democracy today and have increased over the past two decades in response to political participation becoming more pluralistic.
Dialogue Across Difference
Dialogue skills can develop foundational capacity for civic engagement and collective action to strengthen our democracy. The heart of dialogue is not in speaking to convince but rather in active listening and questioning to understand one another.
The Promise of Building Bridges
The UCLA Dialogue Across Difference Initiative offers a model to foster a culture of meaningful exchange, empathy and critical thinking in education and communities.
Why Civics Needs Social Justice Education
Social justice-oriented civics education is crucial for developing the civic knowledge, skills and dispositions people need to fulfill the potential of a multiracial and inclusive democracy.
A Time of Transformation and Possibility
The United States has championed human rights around the globe but needs to consistently ensure those protections domestically.
Paving the Way to a Vibrant Multiracial Democracy
Civics education that tells an honest story about race in our nation is essential for a strong, inclusive democracy.
What It Means To Learn for Justice
LFJ Director Jalaya Liles Dunn emphasizes that “We increase our power to foster change when we are in community with one another – deliberating, deciding and taking action.”
Exclusion Is Unconstitutional
Acts of censorship in education perpetuated by a small group with concentrated power go against the principles outlined in the United States Constitution.
A Call for Anti-Bias Education
To develop the next generation of civic leaders, educate children early and in age-appropriate ways about their identities and key concepts about race.
Educating for Democracy
Effective civics literacy develops critical thinkers who can connect history and current events to engage in democratic action in building an equitable and just society.
Connect Voting Rights History to Current Policies and Discourse
Uncovering the honest history of voting rights in the U.S. is crucial to create an inclusive society and realize the democratic ideals expressed in the Constitution.
Protect LGBTQ+ Progress Toward Equality
Recognizing that LGBTQ+ equality is interconnected with the fundamental rights of all people is essential in strengthening our shared democracy.
Confronting Ableism on the Way to Justice
To build a society that advances the human rights of all people requires the social justice movement to be intentional in including intersecting identities and diverse equity struggles.
Support Democracy and Education Justice
To build a multiracial inclusive democracy requires educating for liberation and civic and political participation across the South and the nation.
