Engagement Civic

Civic Engagement and Social Movements
It
is
estimated that the population of the age of 60 and above in the United
States is somewhere between nine and twelve million. I suggest that the
national government retire all who reach that age on a monthly pension
of $200 a month or more, on condition that
they spend the money as they get it.
— Francis Townsend
According
to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, civic engagement is
the process of working collaboratively with and through groups of
people affiliated by geographic proximity, special interest, or similar
situations to address issues affecting the well-being of those people.
It is a powerful vehicle for bringing about environmental and behavioral
changes that will improve the health of
the community and its members. It often involves partnerships and
coalitions that help mobilize resources and influence systems, change
relationships among partners, and serve as catalysts for changing
policies, programs, and practices (CDC, 1997, p. 9).
Social
movements are an important component of civic engagement. Social
movements are civically engaged groups who wish to affect a public
policy
concern. There are three types of social movements:
Social movements that advocate a public policy change.
Example: The pro-choice movement.
Social movements that resist change.
Example: the anti-nuclear movement.
Social movements that advocate for those without power.
Example: American civil rights movement.
Civic
engagement and social movements have a long history in America, even
before the birth of the United States. During the colonial era, British
subjects came together at various times to attempt to change the
taxation policies (anti-tax movement) implemented by Great Britains
Parliament. Indeed, the American Revolution can also be understood as a
social movement: colonists began to understand and
advocate change based on a new ideology: citizenship.
Social
movements within the United States continued post emancipation.
Civically engaged citizens have formed groups throughout this countrys
history
in order to affect public policy change.
One
specific example of civic engagement and a resulting social movement
are the actions of a 66-year-old physician by the name of Francis
Everett
Townsend. In September 1933, he penned a letter to his local paper. His
plan of action called for the government to provide a pension ($200
dollars) to all retired Americans over the age of 60. This was during
the Great Depression, and it had a great deal
of appeal to older Americans who had few prospects in their declining
years. Before long, Townsend Clubs arose around the country, with well
over 2 million members. All of this from a single letter to the editor.
In time, FDR would sign the Social Security
Act of 1935 into law. Though not as extensive as what Dr. Townsend had
originally proposed, it was a step forward to provide money to elderly
Americans (Kennedy, 1999).
More information about Francis Townsend can be found at the Department
of Social Securitys website.
Directions:
Using the required, academic readings, and supplemental academic
research, please address the following while adhering to the Discussion
Board Rubric:
Select a specific example of public policy from one of the following fields:
Economic policy
An example of economic policy is U.S. budget deficit spending.
Education policy
An example of education policy are the implementation of charter schools.
Environmental policy
An example of environmental policy is the Clean Air Act.
Foreign policy
An example of foreign policy is the interplay between civil liberties and the Patriot Act.
Healthcare policy
An example of healthcare policy is the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).
Welfare policy
An example of welfare policy is Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).
How did civic engagement and/or a social movement affect a previous or current public policy concern?
Was the civic engagement and/or social movement example successful or unsuccessful?
What actions accounted for the success or failure?
What can we learn from this civic engagement and/or social movement example?
Support your examples with information from the text and at least two, additional academic sources.
References:
Jasper, J. M. (2009). Social Movements. In D. Carr (Ed.), Encyclopedia
of the life course and human development (Vol. 2, pp. 424-429). Detroit, MI: Macmillan Reference USA. Retrieved from http://link.galegroup.com.libauth.purdueglobal.edu/apps/doc/CX3273000236/GVRL?u=chic13451&sid=GVRL&xid=b93bd5f6
Kennedy, D.M. (1999). Freedom
from fear: The American people in depression and war, 1929-1945. New York: Oxford University Press.
Principles of community engagement. (1997). Washington, D

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