Respect Government Service: Meet the AmeriCorps members increasing internet access in rural towns

Public trust in the government is near historic lows, according to the Pew Research Center.

Today, 35% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents say they trust the federal government just about always or most of the time, compared with 11% of Republicans and Republican-leaning survey respondents.

It wasn’t always like this. In the 1950s, trust in government was high, with about 75% of Americans saying they trusted the government to do the right thing. That trust began to decline sharply during the Vietnam war in the 1960, and continued to worsen through the Watergate scandal and the Pentagon papers in the 1970s.

Throughout the years, trust is always rated higher among the party with a candidate in office. Today, trust is slightly higher in Democrats than it was a year ago.

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Since the country’s founding, Americans have had a healthy skepticism of government overreach, born from overthrowing a monarchy during the Revolutionary War. But over the centuries, that skepticism has been politicized and has ballooned into something else:

“What began as opposition to strong government and big government has morphed into outright hostility of government and rejection of its legitimacy and authority,” Richard Haass writes in his book, The Bill of Obligations: Ten Habits of Good Citizens.

Haass goes on to make the case for increased volunteerism and national service in America as one solution to widespread apathy or mistrust of government. If folks learn more about the government works, he argues, they’ll be able to understand the actions of those in charge more clearly.

“An added benefit of more widespread national service is that it would expose young people to government, breaking down the perception of government as alien from the people,” he writes.

AmeriCorps is a government agency for national and community service. It’s been around in some form since the 1960s, but the organization now known as AmeriCorps was officially created in 1993. With a goal of increasing participation in government service and volunteerism, the agency employs some 200,000 Americans in non-profits and community projects across the country.

Lead for America and American Connection Corps are just two of such projects. In Iowa and Illinois, we meet some of the AmeriCorps volunteers who are pushing these initiatives forward in their own communities.

“I’m committed to Iowa because it’s home, and I want to leave this home a little better than when I arrived,” says JJ Singh Kapur, a member of the American Connection Corps. “The real beautiful part of serving with AmeriCorps is getting to meet these incredible people from all across the country who have one thing in common: a commitment to their place.”

This is Episode 7 of the multi-part digital series, "A Citizen's Guide to Preserving Democracy: The Series."

Series Description:
American democracy is under threat. Do you have what it takes to be a good citizen? Join Preserving Democracy as we dig into the ten habits of good citizens in a new digital series, A Citizen’s Guide to Preserving Democracy. Explore real-life examples of Americans who are striving to build a healthier democracy and who embody the spirit of a more informed and engaged citizenry… one person at a time.

Based on “The Bill of Obligations: Ten Habits of Good Citizens,” by author and diplomat Richard Haass and the feature-length PBS documentary, A Citizen's Guide to Preserving Democracy from The WNET Group’s Preserving Democracy initiative.

Series premiere: 5.8.24

Now streaming at pbs.org/preservingdemocracy

Funding for A Citizen’s Guide to Preserving Democracy digital series is provided by:
Kimberly Querrey
Dean Dakolias & Monique Cusson
Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation
Sue & Edgar Wachenheim III
Leslie & Ashish Bhutani
The Chang K. Park Foundation
Corporation for Public Broadcasting

The WNET Group’s Preserving Democracy, a public media initiative, receives principal support from:
The Chang K. Park Foundation
with additional major funding from:
William Ackman and Neri Oxman
Ronnie and Lawrence D. Ackman
The Dorothy Y. Pacella Fund
The Anderson Family Charitable Fund
Janet Prindle Seidler

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On the Brink: Playlist for Progress highlights docuseries, town halls and podcasts that tell real, human-centered stories of current, interrelated social challenges facing individuals and communities. The channel is presented by The WNET Group, a PBS content producer.

WATCH more videos and read articles on the Preserving Democracy Website:
https://www.pbs.org/wnet/preserving-d...