As Country Celebrates Its 250th, Rutgers Historian Launches Project to Restore Faith in Democracy
Andrew Shankman is leading an effort to bring scholars for lessons in civics to libraries, museums, schools and other community organizations
If you think the American political system is broken or your vote won’t make a difference, Rutgers-Camden historian Andrew Shankman is working to counter that cynicism with an initiative to restore your faith in democracy.
Shankman is leading a group of historians who are working to reacquaint Americans with the ideals the country was founded on as the United States prepares for its 250th anniversary.
Shankman, president-elect of the Society for Historians of the Early American Republic (SHEAR), is overseeing an unconventional initiative to bridge the gap between historical scholarship and public understanding. The organization recently secured a $100,000 grant from the Henry Luce Foundation to fund a nationwide Civics Exchange.
From the rule of law to the separation of powers, SHEAR’s new initiative will bring expert lectures to libraries, museums, schools and civic groups across the country. We talked with Shankman – who in July will be the third Rutgers scholar to lead this prestigious national organization – to discuss why our civic literacy is fading and how SHEAR aims to help voters navigate the complexities of our republic in its 250th year.
You were just elected president of SHEAR. Tell us about that organization and what you hope to accomplish in your role?
What we’re doing with this Civics Exchange is rare for a scholarly organization like SHEAR. What we have done in the past is produce a journal and host a convention in July where academics network and share ideas. But we are at a moment where we think scholars have to do more than converse with each other and be citizens. The Luce foundation agreed this is important and the $100,000 grant will make this speaker series possible. One big goal I have this year is launching this initiative and getting it to a point where it’s stable and running on its own. I want any group that wants to host one of these events – from the Kiwanis club to the local library – to know to come to us.
Why do you believe our nation’s 250th anniversary is an opportune time to re-educate the public about our Enlightenment-era ideals that inspired the nation’s founding?
People are more willing to think about the origins of the country not just for a nostalgic look at the past, but because they wish they understood why things are the way they are right now. No matter where people stand in the country, everybody has a sense that the nation is more polarized than it’s been, and that’s not good. We as historians can be helpful here.
What are civics?
It’s thinking about the structures of government and the way governance works. What the American Revolution produced was an idea of popular sovereignty. It was an audacious and radical break from the past when the belief was sovereignty belongs with a small group of aristocrats or a monarchy. We are a government of laws, not of people. People entrusted with governance are obligated to obey the will of the people expressed in their constitution, and no one is above the law or can violate that constitution.
Was there a specific historical turning point when we stopped emphasizing these foundational civic lessons?
Over the last 30 to 40 years there’s been a growing cynicism about the value of our government. People don’t think it’s working as it should. They feel powerless and think they can’t influence things. The founders understood this very well: government won’t work without an engaged and committed citizenry. If we feel we can’t effect change and check out of the civic process, the institutions are left to drift away from them and become less responsive – fueling greater cynicism. It all builds on itself.
How do you combat that cynicism?
We are hoping educating people about how our government is meant to work will energize them to demand more of those who govern them and remind those who govern them what is being done is in our name.
What does a “civically reconnected” electorate look like to you? What specific shift in public understanding or behavior do you hope this initiative will spark?
James Madison took the idea of popular sovereignty seriously. He imagined a deliberate process where engaged collective dialogue from the local to the state to the national level would lead to some kind of consensus.
Look at the social media situation today. It is creating the opposite: a fractured and divided people driven by algorithms meant to push us to further our own positions and not collective ones.
If we are going to do anything about it, we need to remind people of that vision of connected citizenry shouldering a collective responsibility. We need to remind people to think about each other and how the government our founders created could bring out the best version of themselves and the nation.
