CIVIC ENGAGEMENT

A democracy is only as strong as its people’s ability to participate in it. Yet, in many nations, particularly in the United States, civic education has been systematically gutted from public school curricula, leaving generations with little understanding of how their government functions, how laws are made, or how they can influence the system beyond casting a vote every few years. The result is predictable: low voter turnout, political apathy, and a society easily manipulated by propaganda and corporate interests. Without civic literacy, democracy itself becomes an illusion—a stage performance in which the people have no real role beyond passive spectatorship.

The numbers speak for themselves. A 2018 survey by the Annenberg Public Policy Center found that only 26% of Americans could name all three branches of government, and 37% couldn’t name a single First Amendment right. The Pew Research Center found that only 56% of eligible U.S. voters participated in the 2020 presidential election, and participation in midterm and local elections is often far lower. Meanwhile, trust in institutions continues to plummet. The Edelman Trust Barometer found that less than 40% of Americans trust the government to do what is right. The disconnect is clear: people feel powerless because they were never taught how to wield power in the first place.

Compare this to nations with strong civic education. In Sweden, where students learn about government structure, media literacy, and democratic participation from an early age, voter turnout consistently exceeds 80%. In Germany, civic education includes mandatory coursework on the dangers of authoritarianism, propaganda, and the historical consequences of democratic collapse. In Taiwan, civic education is directly tied to community service, ensuring that students not only understand democracy but actively participate in shaping their communities before they even reach voting age.

Civic engagement is also about organizing, protesting, holding power accountable, and understanding the systems that shape society. Schools must teach not just the theoretical structure of government, but the real mechanisms of change: how to write and pass local legislation, how to petition representatives, how to organize movements, how to recognize and combat misinformation, and how to navigate legal systems that often serve the powerful at the expense of the people. Without this knowledge, people become easy prey for political manipulation.

A person who feels powerless to influence their society develops apathy, cynicism, or, worse, blind obedience. A well-informed citizen, on the other hand, understands that power is not something given—it is something taken, something exercised. Teaching civic engagement instills confidence, agency, and a sense of responsibility for the world beyond one’s immediate life. It shifts the mindset from passive consumer to active participant.

A society that does not teach civic engagement is a society designed to be ruled, not governed. If democracy is to mean anything, it must be built into the foundation of education. Otherwise, power will always remain where it has always been—with the few who understand how to wield it.

Therefore, under Folklaw:

Civic engagement shall be a mandatory subject in all public schools, covering government structure, voting rights, grassroots activism, labor organizing, and public accountability. Media literacy must be integrated into civic education, ensuring that students can recognize propaganda, corporate influence, and misinformation.

Schools must require direct civic participation, such as involvement in community projects, attending town hall meetings, or drafting policy proposals. The history of democratic failures and authoritarian regimes shall be taught to prevent the next generation from repeating the mistakes of the past. Local governments shall provide free workshops for adults on civic engagement.