Let’s Strengthen America’s Civic Rituals
Last month we observed the national holiday called Presidents Day. Or was it Presidents’ Day or President’s Day? The name depended on which state you lived in and whether you were celebrating one president (usually Washington) or a couple (Washington and Lincoln) or all presidents, past and present. Or, if you live in a few states, such as Delaware, the day was not celebrated at all. What celebrations consisted of varied too, but a common element was holiday sales. After all, the observance was moved to a Monday (not necessarily the birthday of any president) to support a three-day holiday and a shopping spree.
Admittedly, this phrasing of things is a bit sarcastic. Some did take the day more seriously. But the larger point is that many civic rituals have lost a firm connection with what they symbolize, with why they were created. Such observances, notes Eric Liu of Citizen University, should help constitute our “civic religion.” They are meant to bind Americans to the nation and to the importance and responsibilities of citizenship. They are meant as reminders of who we are, where we have come from and what we value in public life.
At a time when Americans seem so divided, civic rituals can be a useful tool. Political polarization, extremism and the growth of distrust among Americans are serious concerns. So too are disagreements on how the nation should handle such topics as religion, race and gender. Add in the growing choice of many to live among – and want their kids to marry – people who share the same political preferences and these divides can become unbridgeable chasms.
Our major institutions too often fail as unifying forces. Those who control political parties, broadcast and social media and interest groups see division as the route to funds and power. Schools devote less attention to civics education as they devote more to the ”basics,” seemingly out of touch with the notion that compassion for and connection to other Americans is very basic to democracy. This shows up in the large percentage of Americans who could not pass the test on our history and government required for gaining citizenship. Americans’ trust in major government institutions – Congress, the presidency, the justice system and elections – has also declined.
Voting, as another example, was once a way to bring citizens from a local community together on a single day in a single polling place to experience their common bonds. That civic ritual has been challenged by everything from early voting to mail-in ballots and, lately, by the threat of harassment and violence that frightens voters from showing up and election officials who are afraid to be there if they do.
Being sworn into military service also used to be a civic ritual that united Americans as a common obligation for young men who then came into contact with the diversity in the nation. The all-volunteer force ended forced conscription but has also separated many young people from forming some very useful social and emotional ties that cut across all segments of America.
Honoring public service heroes/heroines is another civic ritual that can strengthen the bonds of civil society. Historical figures such as Washington and Jefferson are too often now discounted for their obvious failings and under-appreciated for their significant contributions. Many young people today have no civic heroes. A turn of the century poll by staff of the Barron Prize for Young Heroes found that only half of American teens could name a personal hero. Among those who did, Superman and Spiderman were twice as likely to be cited as Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr. or Abraham Lincoln. More than half just named an athlete, musician or winner of American Idol.
Gone also are ticket tape parades for Americans who have made historic contributions. Presidential Medals of Freedom exist but are poorly reported and given in small White House ceremonies which generate no comparison to the coverage of awards given to movie stars, singers and sports figures.
We can, of course, instill the celebration of national holidays with more meaning. We can also design better and more widespread rituals to celebrate other national achievements which are not currently national holidays. Prime among these ought to be Constitution Day, which would teach about and foster appreciation for one thing all Americans share. We could have an annual heavily publicized and well-funded ceremony to recognize achievements in public service, following the pattern of the Kennedy Center Honors for achievements in the arts. We could make Election Day a national holiday to encourage and increase voting and call attention to this important ritual. We could foster more programs of national service, induction into which would constitute a civic ritual. We could recapture the public spirited practice of “war” bonds, which most Americans know little about, with ceremonies to promote and sell federal bonds for a variety of public purposes, such as revitalizing public spaces in cities, towns and rural America.
Civic rituals remind us we are part of one community. When they lapse or weaken, so does that community.
Photo Credit: ghcassel - pixabay.com
