Pilot Educational Video Release

When the pandemic struck in March, The Civic Circle’s musical assembly show “Vote for Me!” was temporarily suspended. As a way to continue sharing our democracy songs, we decided to launch a series of educational videos. Our pilot video draws from the introductory song in our show, “The Citizen Tango,” and uses dialogue to guide students in grades 2-4 through three questions: What is democracy? What are my rights and responsibilities? What is a citizen?…

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Election 2020—A Teachable Moment

The 2020 election has been a teachable moment for Civic Circle students and audiences on several fronts. Students in our after-school workshops have learned firsthand about three of the seven “steps to democracy” at the heart of our program: resolving conflicts peacefully (Listen!), discerning the truth (Learn!) and voting (Choose!). In one sense, peaceful conflict resolution (Listen!) is at the heart of democracy. We choose our leaders through a peaceful transfer of power, not through…

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The Civic Voice: How to Save an Election

ON THE SURFACE, this election looks like a disaster waiting to happen. Congress approved only a small fraction ($400 million) of the estimated $4 billion that states needed to run the election amid a pandemic. Lawsuits, postal service delays, and fears about voter suppression or a looming constitutional crisis have left many Americans bracing for Election Day chaos. But a funny thing happened on the way to the ballot box this year: average Americans, business…

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Join The Civic Circle for Montgomery College and Family Fun Night Shows

The Civic Circle is excited to be sharing our democracy songs at two family-friendly events immediately before and after Election Day. Everybody is invited to join the Civic Circle Sing-A-Long being hosted by Montgomery College as part of the MC Votes “Party to the Polls” celebrations. Teaching artists Uasuf Gueye and Nick Newlin will sing Civic Circle democracy songs, kids can enjoy crafts and coloring, and we will close with a family sing-along. This virtual…

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Family Community Sing Draws 3,700 Views

The Civic Circle was extremely honored to participate in the October Family Community Sing hosted by Carpe Diem Arts and The Washington Revels. Teaching artist Uasuf Gueye shared his new hip-hop voting song, “Democracy,” and teaching artist Nick Newlin shared two other Civic Circle songs, “The Citizen Tango” and “Speak Up.” This virtual musical gathering drew an amazing 3,700, thanks in part to the star power of the evening’s dynamic emcee, Munit Mesfin, who’s on…

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