Civics In A Year
What do you really know about American government, the Constitution, and your rights as a citizen?
Civics in a Year is a fast-paced podcast series that delivers essential civic knowledge in just 10 minutes per episode. Over the course of a year, we’ll explore 250 key questions—from the founding documents and branches of government to civil liberties, elections, and public participation.
Rooted in the Civic Literacy Curriculum from the Center for American Civics at Arizona State University, this series is a collaborative project supported by the School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership. Each episode is designed to spark curiosity, strengthen constitutional understanding, and encourage active citizenship.
Whether you're a student, educator, or lifelong learner, Civics in a Year will guide you through the building blocks of American democracy—one question at a time.
Civics In A Year
Why Jefferson's Words Still Matter Today: The Declaration's Ongoing Importance
Dr. Justin Dyer, dean of UT Austin School of Civic Leadership, explores why the Declaration of Independence remains vitally important in modern America. He examines how the document's foundational principles transcend time and continue to guide our understanding of equality, governance, and human rights.
• Declaration begins with universal truths about equality and rights that remain relevant today
• Reform movements throughout American history have appealed to Declaration principles
• Document provides timeless principles that help us rise above momentary social media disputes
• Even specific grievances against King George III relate to enduring constitutional principles
• Declaration's ideas will remain relevant for America's 250th, 300th anniversaries and beyond if they tap into fundamental truths
• These principles help address modern challenges including AI, population growth, and complex governance
For more information about Dr. Dyer and the UT Austin School of Civic Leadership, visit their website!
Check Out the Civic Literacy Curriculum!
School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership
Hi, my name is Jameson and I'm in fourth grade. My question is why is the Declaration of Independence still important?
Speaker 2:All right, thank you so much for that question. I am very excited because today's scholar is Justin Dyer. He is the dean of UT Austin School of Civic Leadership and he is here to answer the question why is the Declaration still important today? Dr Dyer, he is here to answer the question. Why is the Declaration still important?
Speaker 1:today. Dr Dyer, well, thanks for having me. It's a great question. I think there are several different ways you could answer that.
Speaker 1:One is that the ideas in the Declaration of Independence are still relevant to us today. It begins by proclaiming these ideas that are theoretically true at all times and all places, not just bound to the time in which they're written, saying that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that the purpose of government is to secure those rights and that the just powers of government come from the consent of the governed. And so I think thinking through those ideas and how they apply today is still relevant. But in addition to that, the Declaration has also been extremely impactful, not just in our own country, but different groups have always appealed to them in the service of their own reform movements, and you see that in the 19th century, you see it in the 20th century, I think you still see that in the 21st century. And so it remains a vital source of American ideals and a way of structuring our own disputes about how best to apply those today deals, and a way of structuring our own disputes about how best to apply those today.
Speaker 2:So, as an American, I mean we are in a time of there's lots of social media. I mean information is so easily received. What does that look like, you know, when we're talking about the Declaration of Independence, what does that look like then, if I am an eighth grade student or I'm a senior in high school or maybe a freshman in college, how can I kind of relate to the Declaration and its importance today, living in this world of technology and so much quick change?
Speaker 1:There's a lot of quick change, and in the Declaration there is a flag that's being planted about truths that transcend what is the issue of the moment, and so, of course, it blends those things. It's a document that is written with very particular issues in mind. It's a foreign policy document. If you read all of the charges that are leveled against the king at the end of the document, those are very specific charges, rooted at a time and a place, but they even those, even those charges against the king appeal to things that transcend that particular moment, and so they're all related to the principles of constitutional government.
Speaker 1:Should we have independent courts? Should judges be dependent on the will of the executive? Should people be able to stand for trial for crimes that they have alleged to commit in a place close to where they committed the crimes? There are all these principles that are embedded, even in those charges against the king, that are relevant to us today. And then, of course, these big, these statements of principle at the beginning of the Declaration of Independence remain relevant to us today. In what sense are we all equal, and is that true? And if true, what does that mean for how we live together, for how we make decisions for how we govern ourselves, and so I think all of what we see in the Declaration of Independence really transcends that moment and helps draw us out of the current disputes that we're always in, and I think that social media works very hard to suck us into at all times.
Speaker 2:So these principles and these kind of questions are evergreen. Do you think, you know, next year we're celebrating America 250? And do you think that when we get to 300, 350 years and beyond, that kind of foundation will still be there to help guide what we want as Americans? If those ideas are true, if they tap into something real, then they'll always be relevant. Be there to help guide what we want as Americans.
Speaker 1:If those ideas are true, if they tap into something real, then they'll always be relevant. But even when they were being put forward in the late 18th century, they were contested at the time. They've always been contested throughout American history. There are people who point to them, question whether or not they're valid and in what sense, and who dispute whether or not these things are true. But if true, then they will always guide us and I think as we move into a new era, we think about what does artificial intelligence mean for humanity? What does it mean for human equality? What is our various ideas about government and the complexity of human life and trying to govern from ocean to ocean, with more people and different challenges. How do these principles apply? I think it's relevant at America 250, and I think it'll be relevant at America 300.
Speaker 2:Wonderful. Well, thank you so much for this. Listeners, if you want to learn more about Dr Dyer, ut Austin School of Civic Leadership, I will put that in the show notes. Dr Dyer, you've written a lot of books and have publications kind of on these traditions, so thank you so much for your time today. It is greatly appreciated.
Speaker 1:Pleasure to be with you, thank you.
