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AMERICAN CIVIC CULTURE

AMERICAN CIVIC CULTURE. Gary R. Weaver American University Minsk, Belarus September 19, 2006. Earned Status Individual Achievement Individual Action Equality Immediate family Self Reliance Independence Individual Competition Individualism Guilt Future Class Mobility.

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AMERICAN CIVIC CULTURE

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  1. AMERICAN CIVIC CULTURE Gary R. Weaver American University Minsk, Belarus September 19, 2006

  2. Earned Status Individual Achievement Individual Action Equality Immediate family Self Reliance Independence Individual Competition Individualism Guilt Future Class Mobility Ascribed Status Affiliation Stability Inequality Extended Family Reliance on Others Interdependence Cooperation Collectivism Shame Past or Heritage Caste Rigidity CULTURAL CONTINUUMSTo Do To Be

  3. AMERICAN DREAM • Frontier Experience • Property Rights • Self-Reliance • Independence • American Philanthropy • Andrew Carnegie

  4. INDEPENDENCE DAY • Fourth of July • Public Parks • “Patriotism like a religion”

  5. Dominant or Mainstream American Culture “Middle Class” or “Classless” Protestant – the role of religion Psychology of Abundance vs Psychology of Scarcity Role of Government in the distribution of wealth –social security, welfare, etc. Debate on Federal Budget

  6. RELIGION • First states were religious states • Greater percentage of Christians attend church than any other country in the industrialized world • Greater percentage believe in God • “In God We Trust” • “God Bless America” • “Separation of Church and State” • “Freedom of Religion”

  7. RELIGIOUS GROUPS • 50% Protestant • 22% Roman Catholic • 2% Jews • 4-5% Muslim

  8. BASIC BELIEFS Extreme Individualism Distrust of Strong Central Authority “Less Government is Better Government”

  9. DISTRIBUTION OF POWER • No national police force or education system • Crime is matter for local government • Balance of Power” – Executive, Legislative and Judicial • Balance of Power – Local and Federal Government • Free Press – Plays the role of “parliament”

  10. Government Bodies • One Federal Government with 3 branches • 50 State Governments • 3,100 Counties • 22,373 Municipalities • Each with its own elected officials, bureaucracy, jurisdiction, and budget • They often clash -

  11. BALANCE OF POWER • Executive, Legislature and Judicial • Federal and local • Balance of Individual Civil Rights and Majority Rule • The Role of The Press and “Freedom of Speech”

  12. PRINCIPLES OF AMERICAN GOVERNMENT • Declaration of Independence – to abolish colonial rule and establish the rights of the people • Constitution – to establish a new government • Majority rule but protection of individual minority or “civil rights” • Difference between the Senate and the House • Filibusters

  13. SIMILAR COUNTRIES? • CANADA • AUSTRALIA • SOUTH AFRICA

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