[hr-education-na] Re: USA: Study suggests more civic education needed on First Amendment

Ultimately, I can't help feeling that simply instructing citizens on what
their civil liberties are is just not enough.  A friend of my daughter's
who attends a very conservative university said to me, "The founding
fathers never anticipated terrorist attacks."  Quite simply, she meant to
tell me that the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights
were no longer relevant since 9/11.  Some time later, (long after she had
begun to regret telling me that) I finished explaining to her the
political atmosphere that gave rise to the Declaration of Independence,
the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  I shared with her that the
political and social atmosphere at that time was not terribly different
from our own.  That people were afraid, and ready to have peace at all
costs -- until they found out what that cost really was.  Then they were
ready to vigorously defend the rights they felt all men entitled to.

My point is, that while it is critical for all citizens to understand
their rights, it is equally and concurrently critical that they understand
why those laws exist and what happens when they don't.  Like most
important issues it crosses and melts disciplinary lines.  History,
literature, anthropology, political science, psychology, etc.  all have a
place in teaching civics.  And the WHY is much more important in this
teacher's mind than the WHAT.



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