Strengthening Democracy

The Tales Are Phantasms, But the Victims Are Real: The Trumpian Crucible in Springfield, Ohio

Our guest author is Leo Casey, Special Assistant to the President of the AFT, and Executive Director Emeritus of the Albert Shanker Institute.

In January 1952, the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) subpoenaed the well-known American stage and film director Elia Kazan to testify behind closed doors. There he told the Committee about his own participation in the Communist Party, but declined to name others. In April, he was called back for public hearings. Caving in to threats from HUAC and pressure from the Hollywood studios, Kazan named eight individuals who, with him, had been part of a Communist Party cell in the Group Theatre during the1930s.

Lives were shattered by Kazan’s testimony. The eight named individuals were themselves called before HUAC. The actor J. Edward Bromberg defiantly refused the committee’s demand to name names, but the stress of the ordeal took a terrible toll: he would die young of a heart attack in a matter of months. Others of the eight who resisted HUAC, such as Morris Carnovsky and Phoebe Brand, would never work in film again. Only those who would join Kazan in naming names, such as Clifford Odets and Lewis Leverett, would be able to avoid the Hollywood blacklist and save their film careers.

Angered in equal measures by HUAC’s star chamber and by Kazan informing on one-time friends and comrades, the distinguished American playwright Arthur Miller decided that it was time to mount a forceful public critique of the McCarthyism that lay behind the HUAC hearings. But rather than comment directly on the events of his day, Miller would take the unusual approach of using the late 17^th century witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts as his subject matter.

A Legislator’s Lessons From Fifth Graders

Our guest author is Massachusetts State Senator Becca Rausch.

Earlier this year, I walked into one of the elementary schools in my district to visit with the fifth grade –- all 300 of them. (For those who might not work with young people routinely, that is a lot of fifth graders.) School visits and engaging with students is one of my favorite parts of serving in the Massachusetts Senate. Presently, I am the only mother of elementary school aged children or younger in our chamber, and I’ve worked with children for as long as I can remember, so the fact that I love and dedicate real time and energy to youth outreach is unsurprising. But this particular visit sticks with me because of the enormity of its embedded power.

When I speak with students, I always aim to enhance the existing civics education curriculum. I talk about my path to the State Senate through prior elected service in local government. I present students with an interactive “government tic-tac-toe” grid that shows the three branches of government as implemented within the three levels of government systems. Usually, students know most of the federal branches. Fewer know the state branches. Very few know the local government structures.

“e pluribus unum” Now is the Time for Educators to Build a New Foundation for Excellence in History and Civics Education

Our guest author is Danielle Allen, the James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University, Director of the Democratic Knowledge Project at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and of the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation at the Harvard Kennedy School, and a Board Member of the Shanker Institute.

Once again, on this Constitution Day, we find ourselves in a nation under stress– with a polarized electoral landscape and high levels of disconnection from our constitutional democracy among young people who see our political system as not responsive to the challenges of our times–school shootings, climate change, stalled social mobility. The classroom cannot alone change these dynamics, but it can help.

Yet teaching American history and civics is particularly challenging right now, precisely because of that polarized landscape. As educators, how do we share our nation’s story and help students develop the skills to consider other people’s perspectives so that today’s students are civically engaged and can work together to sustain our constitutional democracy in the future?

On the 61st Anniversary of the March on Washington: We Can't Go Back

Our guest author is Walter Naegle, Bayard Rustin's partner from 1977-87, co-author of "Troublemaker for Justice –- The Story of Bayard Rustin, the man behind The March on Washington”, and a historical consultant on the film "Rustin."  

Last November’s release of the Netflix docudrama  “Rustin” brought the name of life-long social justice activist Bayard Rustin into the homes of millions worldwide.  The film, released by Higher Ground Productions (founded by Barack and Michelle Obama), featured an award-winning performance by Colman Domingo, who brought to life Rustin’s brilliance, integrity, and creativity.  The plot focusses on Rustin’s organizing  the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, perhaps the most iconic demonstration in American history.   The March was pulled together with remarkable speed, and according to Ernest Green, a member of Rustin’s staff that summer, without cellular phones, faxes or computers.   “All of this was organized on 3 x 5 cards out of Bayard’s back pocket.”¹   Green, the first Black graduate of Little Rock’s Central High School, later worked with Rustin in the Recruitment and Training Program, a pioneering effort to increase minority membership in trade unions.   He then went on to serve as Assistant Secretary of Labor in the Carter administration.  

The March was a textbook example of coalition building, a uniting of forces with somewhat divergent interests, but with a common goal, in this case the advancement of civil rights for African Americans, particularly in the areas of labor and employment.  Originally called a March on Washington for Jobs, the “Freedom” piece was added to muster support for the flawed, but important, civil rights bill proposed by President John F. Kennedy.  It was also a nod to the courage displayed by civil rights workers who had faced a brutal backlash during that spring and summer.

Experiential Learning Around the World

From July 29-August 2, 2024 the Albert Shanker Institute had the opportunity to offer Shanker Conversations as part of the Education International World Congress in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This followed ASI’s inaugural participation in the 2019 World Congress in Bangkok, Thailand. Because Albert Shanker cofounded Education International, the Albert Shanker Institute’s participation at EI’s World Congress is a natural extension of Al’s vision of learning and building power together globally, just as ASI’s Shanker Conversations are an extension of Al’s commitment to free and open debate.

This blog is a companion to the video of the conversation, Experiential Learning Around the World.

In the classroom, experiential learning gives students opportunities to explore, tinker, think critically, create, and, importantly, use teamwork in order to solve problems. It’s a great template for life-beyond school, where we learn, try, succeed or fail, and then try again.

Very often experiential learning is closely linked to career and technical education – often referred to by its acronym, CTE.  Career and technical education builds real-world skills by combining experiential practice and academics to unlock learning for many students. CTE can, of course, include the traditional trades, but also for in-demand careers in healthcare, information technology, skilled manufacturing, agriculture and environmental science, business modeling, and entrepreneurship. Experiential learning can be found in any content class, English/language arts, science, math, or social studies—like these Action Civics lessons written by fellows of the Albert Shanker Institute—or in traditional learning-by-doing subjects like world language, music and the arts, or physical education. 

Democracy Ascending

July 29-August 2, 2024 the Albert Shanker Institute had the opportunity to offer Shanker Conversations as part of the Education International World Congress in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This followed ASI’s inaugural participation in the 2019 World Congress in Bangkok, Thailand. Because Albert Shanker cofounded Education International, the Albert Shanker Institute’s participation at EI’s World Congress is a natural extension of Al’s vision of learning and building power together globally, just as ASI’s Shanker Conversations are an extension of Al’s commitment to free and open debate.

This blog is a companion to the video of the conversation, Democracy Ascending.

While extreme right wing political movements have been making news, it has been encouraging to see political movements committed to maintaining and growing democracy rise in recent elections as well. From the historic presidential election in Mexico this spring to this summer’s Labour election landslide in the United Kingdom and leftist coalition in France, thanks to the persistence of people in every region of the world demanding their rights be respected and their voices being heard, we’re seeing real indications that we may be turning the tide in favor of Democracy rising.

These promising wins are in direct opposition to the shift stirring up a new nationalism that takes pride in casting the media as the enemy, seeks to debase the voting process, weakens the judiciary, threatens our freedoms of speech and association, and undercuts workers’ rights.

Global Threats from the Hard Right

From July 29-August 2, 2024 the Albert Shanker Institute had the opportunity to offer Shanker Conversations as part of the Education International World Congress in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This followed ASI’s inaugural participation in the 2019 World Congress in Bangkok, Thailand. Because Albert Shanker cofounded Education International, the Albert Shanker Institute’s participation at EI’s World Congress is a natural extension of Al’s vision of learning and building power together globally, just as ASI’s Shanker Conversations are an extension of Al’s commitment to free and open debate.

This blog is a companion to the video of the conversation, Global Threats from the Hard Right.

Extreme right political movements are gaining power across the globe threatening longstanding democracies. In the United States Project 2025 outlines the tactics to dismantle our democracy by attacking the rule of law, undermining an independent judiciary, restricting freedoms of expression and association, disenfranchising voters, abolishing our public schools, and targeting trade unions and other civil society institutions. These actions, whether they are in Project 2025 or the political platform of a right wing politician, are a clear and present danger to our democracies.

UK Election: A Lesson for the U.S.

Our guest author is Stan Litow, professor, Columbia University; vice president emeritus, IBM's Global Corporate Citizenship Program; president emeritus, IBM International Foundation and a member of the Albert Shanker Institute Board of Directors.

What a month of news! While July is ending with a renewed concern about political violence and a different presidential match-up than the one it started with, before July ends, I’d like to bring us back to a lesson across the Atlantic I’d like to make sure we learn.

Looking back, for many the joy of this year's July 4th celebration was muted, largely because of a continued controversy after the U.S. Presidential debate.  July 4th in the UK saw game-changing election results, where the newly elected Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his party achieved an unprecedented victory. In his victory speech Prime Minister Starmer sincerely sought to unite and not divide his nation, moving his party more toward the center, praising his predecessor and making it clear he intended to bring the nation together by ending divisive rhetoric and seeking agreement behind an agenda that would benefit not some, but all, and supporting the vital role public service and government action can play. Sounds like the sentiments embedded in the U.S. Constitution.

A Nation’s ‘Teachable Moment’: What We Need to Learn from Trump’s Trials and Reactions

Educators treasure something we call “teachable moments”—those occasions when a high-profile event captures our students’ attention, interest and imagination. As experienced and accomplished classroom teachers of civics, social studies and English language arts, the three of us would look forward to such moments, as they provided unique opportunities to engage students in in-depth learning on important subjects.

The May 31 criminal conviction of former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate, is certainly a “teachable moment,” and not only for students, but for all Americans. It is the first time in our history that an individual who held the highest elected office in our republic has been found guilty of committing a felony—not once, but 34 times, and by a jury of his peers.

What should educators teach students about this trial and conviction? What should Americans conclude about these events?

What Two Civil Rights Heroes Can Teach Today's Left

Guest author and Shanker Institute Board Member Richard Kahlenberg reviews Climbing the Rough Side of the Mountain: The Extraordinary Story of Love, Civil Rights, and Labor Activism, the memoir of civil and labor rights leaders Norman and Velma Hill.

If you’re worried about threats to liberal democracy in America, emanating primarily from Donald Trump but also from parts of the progressive left, a new memoir published by two veteran civil rights activists provides a refreshing reminder that a better path remains open. Climbing the Rough Side of the Mountain: The Extraordinary Story of Love, Civil Rights, and Labor Activism, by Norman and Velma Hill, two black civil rights leaders, provides a fascinating account of their years working closely with Martin Luther King Jr., A. Philip Randolph, and Bayard Rustin to make their country live up to its ideals.