School Shootings: Civic Engagement as a Preventive Measure

The public discussion during this entire week has been on the series of mass shootings, culminating in the Newtown tragedy, and what course of government action should be taken to address the shooting and prevent other tragedies. I am hearing the start of a vigorous debate concerning gun control and other discussions concerning mental health law and practice. I have even heard the absurd notion that laws should be instituted to require attendance at religious institutions.

While any proposal suggesting that religious involvement be made mandatory is certainly a violation of the First Amendment, and contrary to the commonly accepted notions of "personal freedom," the notion that we as a society would be safer if our community associations were stronger is actually a very legitimate point.  Thus, the root notion that tragedies of this kind might be prevented or decreased if community engagement were strengthened is not only not absurd, but very much worth exploring.

Professor Daniel P. Aldrich writes about disaster and resilience in places like Japan and Indonesia where there are periodic natural disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis.  He also lived in New Orleans around the time of Hurricane Katrina. My understanding is that he teaches that in places where community is strong and people regularly care for and communicate with each other, resilience is more likely.  If I am correctly understanding the few lectures of his that I have heard, this is in part because warning of impending disasters are more likely to be communicated to everyone in the community. Additionally, community action plans are thus more likely to exist.  One can imagine that an "each for himself" model means that the only one saved is the one who first heard the warning shot and had the most means to find safety.

These findings are consistent with what I observed when I was a community organizer, namely that when community organizations were strong with membership and organization, there was a far greater likelihood that their voice would be heard in political circles, and also a likelihood that a mobilized citizenry can shape public debate and push its agenda.  

However, community organizing is not only about power for a collection of people. It is also about inclusion, and self-empowerment of individuals.  I believe that members of community associations are far more likely to get their needs met--and not only political needs. Those who attend community association meetings are, by definition, interacting with others, often discussing their personal problems and connecting with others who can help.  One of the most important benefits of community association membership is that one's concerns, at least an aspect of one's concerns, are validated, and one is meant to feel empowered that through collective action, certain problems can be lessened or solved.

From what I understand, many or all of the mass shooters (during the past month or so) were loners, likely feeling totally dis-empowered by a world that seems unloving and disconnected.  This feeling can be known all too well when folks are so concentrated on their own getting ahead that they do not have moments to care for their neighbors.    When community associations are well run, each member's contributions to the group are honored. While members may still feel discontent with society at large, their lust for life is inspired by their partners in crime.

In no way do I suggest that community association membership is a panacea that will solve all community problems or prevent the next mass murder.  It is certainly true that there will be individuals so deranged that membership in a community association will have no favorable effect on them.  In fact, if the media were focused on the importance of community associations as the single solution to these mass shootings, I would probably be concerned that we were missing many other aspects of the solution, namely mental health issues and access to weapons by those with distorted objectives.  However, as I am hearing no talk of the importance of functional community associations to prevent future tragedies, I felt the need to raise the issue here. 

It has taken me a week to publish this piece. Hearing no discussion about the importance of civic engagement to the prevention of dangerous mental illness, I began to question my own opinion. However, this evening I came across an article that I believe supports my thesis.  I came across a short monograph published by the American Association of Colleges and Universities called "Bringing Theory to Practice Monographs: Civic Provocations" which included an article by Corey Keyes, Professor of Sociology, entitled "The Euphoric and the Civic."  

Keyes writes that he sees "civic engagement as critical to promoting flourishing in students" thereby preventing mental illness and reducing the risk of premature death.  Keyes further writes that "in our heart of hearts, we know that alone is not good enough. We also need actively to construct a good life, one that has a positive impact on society and that promotes the well-being of others." He goes so far as to say that there are two kinds of happiness, "one that is attained through the pursuit of individual interests and pleasure, the other through the pursuit of the greater good."  He further argues that "flourishing" requires both, and that there have been numerous studies in several countries (including in the United States) which show that those who flourish "have the lowest risk of mental illness..."

Keyes remarks " Yet although we’ve planted a flag for flourishing here in the United States, we’re still behind Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Canada, and other countries that are further along in promoting positive mental health for their citizens. We cannot treat our way out of the problem of mental illness. To promote flourishing, we need to help people do better than just pursuing individual interests and pleasure."

Keyes concludes his text: "By promoting flourishing, we can contribute greatly to the public good by preventing mental illness. By investing in more civic engagement, students can contribute to the greater good and increase their chances of flourishing."

I can personally vouch for the increase in mental health that one can experience when engaging in community activism.  Community activism and engagement has been a critical aspect of my happiness since 1993.  In some years my community activism has been driven towards the political and in other years it has been more driven towards the parochial. However, in all years, my happiness could be connected to my involvement in working with others in strengthening a particular community.  

In conclusion, I hope this article will convince you to consider how your mental health can be improved by engaging in local community associations, whether they be religious, secular, political, or simply designed to provide a valuable community service. 

Book Review: Kourlis and Olin Make Accessible the Conversation About Making Justice More Accesible

I very much enjoyed reading Rebuilding Justice: Civil Courts in Jeopardy and Why You Should Care by Rebecca Love Kourlis and Dirk Olin, and would encourage anyone concerned with access to justice issues to read it. In this 2011 text, Kourlis and Olin discuss several ways in which our judicial system is not adequately serving the public's need.

My praise of this book is high. I have not recently seen any other book distill for the lay person the problems facing our judiciary, and lay out different techniques for addressing the identified problems.  I believe that this book can and should encourage readers to consider and take seriously the needs of the judicial branch of government. 

Each chapter to this book addresses a specific weakness in our judicial system, and raises particular possible solutions, many of which reflect existing experiments already in place in various jurisdictions.   For instance, the second chapter illustrates the highly politicized method of judicial selection in the federal bench, explains how the politicization has such a negative effect on the citizen’s trust of the judiciary, and offers alternative selection mechanisms.  The fifth chapter discusses the impact of the cost of discovery on the accessibility of the court systems on non-wealthy members of society.  The eighth chapter focuses in on the extent to which the traditional adversarial system fails to address complex issues in family law are addressed—and it presents and innovative approaches around the country towards combating those issues.

This book offers many suggestions for fixing the problems it describes.  Each reader will likely find suggestions that they find very valuable and other suggestions which they find problematic or wrong.  I personally was very pleased to read about innovations in the family court arena, but thought that the book’s issues with e-discovery did not factor in the fact that extensive e-discovery is sometimes the only way to uncover deception or duplicity. In fact, I take a particular pleasure if the fact that this book presents ideas with which I agree along with idea with which I disagree. Where I in agreement with all of the book’s suggestions,  I might be disinclined to consider the true message of this book—that citizens have an interest in the ways in which our courts function.

In other words, the most important take home lesson from this book is that every citizen should deeply care about functionality and fairness of the judicial process because our democratic system is dependent on it. A secondary take home lesson is that organizing the judiciary involves serious consideration of whether the court rules, methods of access, and other aspects of the organization of the court, properly and sufficiently serve the constituents of the system, namely the general citizenry.

Should this book be released in a second edition, I hope there will be a little more discussion more fully explaining why a functioning judiciary is so important to our republic.  Although the book very clearly demonstrates how access to our legal system has decreased for many individuals, the book appears to invite its readers to presume why the problem matters—which is not inherently obvious to those unfamiliar with the courts. My personal view is that elementary exposure to contract theory will convince all readers that the absence of a functioning court system will lead many individuals to problematic self-help techniques, like use of personal weapons or the employment or engagement of gang or mafia protections.  A functioning civil court system provides a mechanism for citizens of a society to have their disputes resolved without resorting to dangerous self-help techniques.   Once readers already understand this premise, they should appreciate the issues presented in this discourse.

In short, I see this book as the introduction to an important discussion society should be having about what we expect of our courts, and I personally hope that I am able to contribute to this discussion in a valuable way. 

Prohibition Exhibit Deserves Good Mark for Legal Literacy

On May 30, 2010, I wrote about the role museums can have in increasing knowledge and proposed that a National Museum of (American) Law could have some value. See my article at: Idea: National Museum of (American) Law.  An excellent example of what I had in mind could be found in the exhibit: "American Spirits: the Rise and Fall of Prohibition," available at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia now.  the exhibit is available through April 28, 2013

The exhibit presents our nation's history of the prohibition with alcohol, addressing the medical and social problems that inspired many Americans to endorse the prohibition experiment--and thus the 18th Amendment, crime and other problems associated with the illegal use and purchase of alcohol during the time of prohibition, and the factors leading to the establishment of the 21st Amendment, thus ending the alcohol prohibition experiment.   Although the exhibit does not pretend to reflect on all aspects of life in the 1920s, it presents a nice window into life during that time period.

The Prohibition exhibit is appropriate for the Constitution Center, and this blog, because of its serious focus on the legal side of Prohibition.  The attendee of the exhibit is encouraged to reflect on the community organizing and lobbying involved in introducing and promotion of a Constitutional Amendment along with enabling legislation.

 One aspect of the exhibit is the "Is it Legal" game that invites participants to consider whether certain forms of alcohol use or possession is legal or illegal under the 18th Amendment and Volstead Acts.  Another aspects of the exhibit is what appears to be excerpts of records from the prosecutions of various violations of the law during the time of Prohibition.  These aspects, along with a few others, give the attendee a picture of the role of legal process in historical events.

If I were curating this exhibit for my proposed National Museum of (American) Law, I am sure I would have have done more to describe and demonstrate procedural aspects of the legal arena. However, putting aside any dream exhibit, I think this exhibit deserves high marks for very quickly illustrating the complex aspects of the legal and Constitutional experiment involving the prohibition of alcohol.  I have no doubt that the average viewer's appreciation for the legal and legislative process is expanded, at least to some extent.

Legal Literacy Course Now Mandatory in Punjab in Context of More Global Educational Push By Legal Community Leaders

The Times of India just reported that it will be mandatory for all students in colleges affiliated with Panjab University to take legal literacy as a subject. One article in the Times of India reports that the  Nishta Jaswal, Chairperson of the Department of Law, stated that this decision was made because "all students require legal knowledge."  Although the course has not yet been designed, it appears as if it will be a survey course designed to deliver only the underlying basics to the students in the course. Compared with a mandatory course in road safety (also mandatory at Panjab), the article noted that the course will be designed in a manner that will not distract students from other rigorous courses.

The announcement of this course comes in the context of what would appear like a more global push by the leaders of the legal and educational community in Punjab to advance legal knowledge in the general population.  

• In this month alone, Legal Literacy Youth Festivals were held at both Dev Raj Hi-Tech College and Apeejay College of Fine Arts. From what I can tell from local news reports, these festivals include contests involve skits, poetry, poster presentations, and photography on a variety of social topics like domestic violence, child labor, and other social ills, designed to increase awareness among the citizenry of their rights with regards to these issues.
• Punjab Newsline reported last week that government schools in Chandigarh will sponsor legal literacy clubs in high schools and colleges with the aim of making student members a bridge between people in need of legal aid and the legal services entities.  Despite a literacy rate of 86.4 percent, many are unaware of their legal rights to escape abuse, access government services, and with regard to interactions with the police.
• On November 12th of this year, the Times of India reported that the legal literacy clubs have become a "real hit" and have increased interactions between students and lawyers in the locations in which these clubs have been established. 

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