Civics in the shadow of Capitol Hill: Letter from a D.C. high school
In the wake of last week’s gridlocked rounds of voting for House speaker, sophomore civics skills students at Dunbar High School gathered for their law and justice advocacy class this week just a mile up New Jersey Avenue from the U.S. Capitol to cast their own ballots for class representatives.
“Democracy means power to the people,” says social studies teacher Shelina Warren, passing out ‘vote’ stickers as students drop their green paper ballots in a red-white-and-blue shoebox. Several girls stick them on their cheeks. “We have the power, but if we don’t use it, what’s the benefit?”
She tells her students that they’ve just engaged in the same process that members of the U.S. House did over the
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