The Diversity of Americans Mrs. Cox Civics and Economics-1

What is Civics? Americans’ understanding of citizenship goes back to ancient times. More than 2,500 years ago, the people of Greece and Rome had ideas about the duties of people who lived in a country and about what their government should be like. The Greek thinker Aristotle wrote that the best way to achieve liberty and equality was by all people sharing in the government. In this early culture, only a few people could be citizens and have the benefits of citizenship.

What is Civics? When we study Civics, we about the duties of being citizens of our country and about the rights promised us by our government. We also find out about the loyalty we owe our country and the protections the government gives us. Citizens agree to follow a set of rules and to accept the government.

A Changing Society Immigrants from around the world helped change American society. Their many ethnic backgrounds create a diverse culture. This culture continues to be a work in progress even today.

A Changing Society The first immigrants into North America were Native Americans. They crossed from Asia via a land bridge. People from Spain came in the 1500s and settled in the Southwest. Immigrants from England and France came to North America in the 1600s. Other groups from Europe came later. Some immigrants came to the North America by choice but some had no choice. Many enslaved Africans were migrated all over the world as slaves.

A Changing Society Europe was the number one contributor to immigration to the US until the mid-1900s. Later people arrived from Latin America and are the fastest growing ethnic population in the US today, closely followed by immigrants from Asia. The majority of Americans still have European heritage, followed by African, Latino, and Asian heritage.

A Changing Society American society has changed in other ways as well. Many Americans have moved from the country to the city and shifted our economy to a more service based economy. Many factory jobs have shifted out of the country, since the 1990s. However, in the last five years, there is another shift beginning to slowly take place, as some factories are coming back to the US.

American Values and Institutions People from different backgrounds can share many values. For instance, ideas about fairness and equality would be shared values. Personal freedoms and tolerance of others’ beliefs are important. Americans believe that popular sovereignty is the way our government should function. Meaning that the government governs by agreement with the people.

American Values and Institutions Social institutions help shape our society. A social institution is a set of ideas that people have about relationships and roles in society. The family is the basis of American Life. Churches, mosques, and temples offer a sense of unity and belonging. Education helps pas along our countries identity. We share common values through service organizations and governmental institutions.

1-2 Who are America’s Citizens? People born in the US or its territories are citizens. Immigrants move to the US to become citizens. The process to become a citizen is called naturalization. In this legal process, people who are aliens, or noncitizens, can receive citizenship. An alien must apply to be a citizen. They take classes about the history and government of the US, as well as English. The alien must also go through an interview process with an immigration official. The final step to become a citizen is to take the oath of citizenship in an official ceremony. The new citizen must promise to be loyal to the US, obey the laws of the land and serve in the armed forces, if needed.

Path to Citizenship A person’s citizenship cannot be taken away unless it is obtained incorrectly. Only criminals can be denied some of their citizenship privileges, such as voting. People can give up their US citizenship by the leaving the US and living in a foreign country.

Aliens in America Thousands of people enter the US from other countries. We accept about 700,000 people legally to the US each year. People who have relatives here or special job skills that are needed have priority over others. Legal entries to the US pay taxes and receive legal protection from the government. Legal aliens can not vote, serve on juries, or work for the government.

Aliens in American Illegal aliens have not met the government’s requirements for entering or staying in the country. They may have entered illegally or stay past the allowed time. Some people have been turned down to enter the country legally. It is against the law to hire illegal aliens to work. They may be deported by the immigration officials. There are more than 15 million people living in the US legally as immigrants. The US border patrol works to stop illegal aliens from entering the country from all access points. The land and sea borders are patrolled constantly.

1-3 Government and The People Governments are created to help stop conflicts where people live together. Governments enforce laws. Police officers, courts, and armed forces provide security.

The Need for Government Governments provide public services, such as libraries, firefighters, street lights and streets. Governments can also provide food, money, housing, and health care for people in need.

The Need for Government Officials set goals for government services by forming public policy. The policy sets the budget. The budget charts how much money the government earns and how much it can spend on each program. The policy also can decide relations with nearby governments.

The Need for Government In the US, the federal government in Washington DC makes laws for the entire nation. States and communities make their own laws, but they must agree with federal laws. Federal laws always take precedence over lower levels of government.

Types of Government The idea of democracy came about in ancient Athens, where all the citizens helped make the laws. The Athenian model was a direct democracy, with each citizen voting on government decisions. Many countries today have representative democracies, in which a small group of citizens are elected to govern for the people. In a democracy people share the decision making by voting in free and fair elections. We then accept these decisions made by the elected officials based on majority rule. We also respect the rights of the minority as well.

Types of Government Royal figures such as kings and queens inherit their powers and titles. This is called a monarchy. There is also a constitutional monarchy which has modern democratic practices, and the monarch’s powers are limited by the country’s laws.

Types of Government Some types of governments are not controlled by the people. These governments are different forms of authoritarian governments which give power to one individual as a dictator and their immediate followers carry out the dictators wishes. There are also absolute monarchies in which the rulers have no limits to power and these rulers do not hesitate to sue force. Saudi Arabia and Qatar are two such countries. These monarchs and dictators limit rights of individuals and do not allow free speech. Totalitarian governments take away almost all individual freedoms. China, North Korea and Cuba fall under this category.