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We need active citizens to drive America

By: Harry Pozychi
Your Turn
Guest columnist

..... Perhaps the greatest danger of today's degraded politics, dominated by disinformation, conspiracy theories and demonetization of one's opponents, is that it is such a turn-off that too many of us are simply turning out. This leaves the political playing field to the most extreme and ideological among us. They are having an outsized impact on our government precisely because the majority of Americans who share a belief in the value that have undergrided our democracy, and approach politics and civic life more pragmatically, are increasingly on the sidelines.
..... A recent analysis by Tufts University Center for Information & Research on civic Learning, or CIRCLE, of the attitudes of young adults, for example, finds that while they are supportive of democracy values, they are passive and disengaged from civic life and active citizenry. Nearly two out of thee members of Generation Z - people ages 18 to 29 - "value the basic values and practices of democracy, but they are relatively disengaged from civic action and may be passive in the face of current threats to democracy," the analysis found.
..... their disengagement is in part because young adults believe that democracy as they are experiencing it today "cannot solve the nation's problems and is not working well for their generation."
..... This dissatisfaction with how politics and government are operating today and the related retreat form civic life is widespread among middle-aged and older Americans as well.
..... Reegaging our citizenry in the face of this loss of belief in our democracy's capacity to solve our problems will be an uphill battle. But one encouraging finding in the CIRCLE analysis points to a way forward: When young adults have chances to develop civic skills and participate in civic actions, they become more committed to democracy and to staying involved. At the Citizen Service we have aloof found this to be true: that when people are offerer the opportunities to learn civic skills and put them to use, they value the democratic process and the roles they can play.
..... This will require offering all Americans a deeper, fuller and ultimately more satisfying kind of engagement, one that is rooted in community and designed to take advantage of the digital tools available today. this kind of engagement doesn't require us to place our faith in politicians; it requires us to trust ourselves instead, availing ourselves of the tools and training to "Power Up."
..... The training the Citizen Service offers, for instance, teaches how to find solutions that work through Online searching. It also imparts a no-blame approach designed to avoid the blame game and keep the focus on the solutions themselves rather than conspiracies and other forms of disinformation. Importantly, it also offers citizens an opportunity to join with their fellow community members to find and report successful solutions to leave their hometowns better than they found them. A solution sharing platform adds national impact.
..... Enlisting Americans coast-to-coast in this more robust form of engagement - one that has been shown to achieve real results - is the way to change our political culture from a culture of celebrity and careerism to one of unselfish service to community and country.
..... It works because its foundation is the Emersonian virtue of self-reliance. The answer do not lie with politicians in Washington, but with each and every one of us. Embracing that belief and the responsibility that comes with it is the key to repairing our democracy and creating the firepower needed to take on the challenges we face.

..... Harry Pozycki, a resident of Peath Amboy, [NJ] is the founder of The Citizen Service, a citizen-driven national public service for all Americans, and the author of "Citizen Power," published by Rutgers University Press.

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