An alternative citizenship test

Posted 8/21/12

It’s not often you’ll hear me approving of news out of Arizona. The state that gave us Evan Meacham and Sheriff Joe Arpaio is not usually thought of as a birthplace for interesting ideas. But …

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An alternative citizenship test

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It’s not often you’ll hear me approving of news out of Arizona. The state that gave us Evan Meacham and Sheriff Joe Arpaio is not usually thought of as a birthplace for interesting ideas. But they’ve recently introduced a new requirement: to graduate from high school, all students must pass a civics test similar to the one given those seeking naturalized citizenship.

At first glance, I like the concept very much. Americans’ general ignorance of the way their system works is legendary, and anything that encourages greater civic awareness is a good thing in my book.

The body of knowledge involved—100 questions on the basic structure of the federal government, some highlights of American history, and a smattering of geographical facts—is neither extensive nor particularly controversial. (You can obtain study materials, including a complete list of questions and answers, via www.uscis.gov/citizenship/learners/study-test.)

That’s fine as far as it goes. But I think it overlooks a few things that are important for anyone entering into responsible adulthood, not to mention citizenhood, here in 21st century America to know and understand. Folks should be aware of how things really work in government—as opposed to how they are ostensibly designed to work. They should also be familiar with some of those inconvenient little tidbits from history that may not show us in our best light, but nonetheless have had a drastic impact on the way we are today.

So, here are some of the many questions that might be included in an “Alternative Citizenship Test.” If you can answer, say, two-thirds of these questions without using Google, then congratulate yourself…!

Alternative Citizenship Test

What does a lobbyist do?

Explain the significance of one of the following Supreme Court cases:

Brown v. Board of Education

Roe v. Wade

Bush v. Gore

Citizens United v. FEC

Identify one of the following:

Trail of Tears

My Lai

Japanese internment

Abu Ghraib

Name at least one important labor leader of the 20th Century.

What were the Stonewall riots?

Who was Cesar Chavez?

Who was Joseph McCarthy?

When speaking of the relationship between government and business, what is “the revolving door?” Name someone who has gone through it recently.

Why are political or other scandals frequently given names that end in “-gate”?

Name three major media conglomerates.

Identify at least one of the following:

Roger Ailes

The Koch Brothers

George Soros

What is a “Superfund site?”

What do Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie have in common?

Identify at least one of the following:

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Gloria Steinem

Phyllis Schlafly

Ellen de Generes

What was the Dust Bowl?

What is the Fed?

Name one of the robber barons.

Explain the significance of one of the following:

The Homestead Massacre

The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

Love Canal

Three Mile Island

Who is Grover Norquist? Jack Abramoff? Bernie Madoff?

What is the NRA?

Identify one of the following:

Hurricane Katrina

Deepwater Horizon

Exxon Valdez

How many times is the word “God” mentioned in the U.S. Constitution?

In political discourse, what is “framing?” Give a recent example.

Identify one of the following:

Karl Rove

Frank Luntz

George Lakoff

Lee Atwater

What was the Southern Strategy?

What is gerrymandering?

What is the NSA?

So, how did you do? I think I’ve barely scratched the surface. You could probably come up with a few questions of your own, too. In fact, I’d encourage you to do so; please send them to me at skip.mendler@gmail.com. (In particular, I’d be very interested to see what folks more conservative than I am would include.)

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