Edition No. 25
In this Edition
Arts and Culture
Cliff Bell’s has a new music director! Detroit native Noah Jackson, a well-renowned bassist, has returned to the city and will be directing and curating an impressive lineup of talent at Detroit’s most famous jazz club.
Our American Values
The Educating for American Democracy Initiative is a very conscious attempt to find more of a middle path of what citizens need to know about our history, Constitution, and system of government.
Coming Back Home
Jazz bassist Noah Jackson: New Musical Director and Artist-In-Residence at Cliff Bell's
Detroit is known for its musicians. A city that produces artist after artist whose work embodies the very soul and passion that keep our community moving forward. And while many artists leave the city to pursue their dreams, it’s always a moment of pride when one of our own returns homes. A recent article from the Detroit Metro Times shared the exciting news that one of our city’s finest, Noah Jackson, was back and ready to redefine the music scene in the city. Noah has recently been named the music director and artist-in-residence of the famous Detroit jazz club, Cliff Bell’s.
A native to the city, Jackson’s love for music and performing was cultivated by his education at Michigan State University and involvement with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s Civic Jazz program. Upon graduation, Jackson moved to New York City to further his education and expand upon his skills. He became a prominent name in the jazz community and is renowned as a top-notch bassist. He returned home to Detroit during the height of the pandemic to make a difference in the city that built him. His new position at Cliff Bell’s serves as an opportunity to revitalize jazz and dance music in the city, and bring Detroit back as a prominent player in the music scene. Read the full article to learn more about Noah’s new opportunity, and be sure to visit the recently re-opened Cliff Bell’s to hear some of the best jazz music around!
Image courtesy of Noah Jackson.
About Noah Jackson
Originally from Detroit, Michigan, Noah Jackson is a bassist, cellist, and composer playing a wide variety of music from jazz and classical, to funk and soul. A graduate of Michigan State University (B.M.) under the direction of Rodney Whitaker, and the Manhattan School of Music (M.M.) with Dr. Larry Ridley, Noah Jackson has been performing internationally and across the US with many top acts in music. Known for his infectious time, support, and creativity, his distinct sound is a presence that complements nearly any musical situation.
Click or tap here to learn more about Noah, and listen to his impressive body of work.
Education for Responsible Citizenship
There is a persuasive body of evidence showing that our nation has long neglected civics and social studies education. Only twenty-two states require that high school students demonstrate a meaningful understanding of our system of government to graduate and annual surveys show an appalling lack of knowledge of even our most fundamental rights on the part of adult Americans. There is also a growing consensus that neglecting social studies and civics education has contributed to our present political dysfunction and, possibly, to events of January 6th. There is much less consensus, however, as to exactly what Americans need to know to become more responsible and effective citizens.
So, for the next few editions, we will use this space within Inspired Thoughts devoted to American Democracy to consider four questions that are at the heart of our work:
How much do Americans really know about our system of government?
Can better civics and social studies education truly remedy America’s political dysfunction?
What needs to be emphasized, or not emphasized, in a renewed focus on civics and social studies?
How can we also reach adults who seemed to have missed, or forgotten, civics class?
What needs to be emphasized, or not emphasized, in a renewed focus on civics and social studies?
The Search for a Middle Path: The Educating for American Democracy Initiative
It would not be unfair to think of the 1776 Commission and the 1619 Project as comprising the right and left ends of a spectrum of thinking about what children need to learn, and adults need to know, about our history, Constitution, and system of government. The civics education initiative that we will explore this week, Educating for American Democracy Initiative, is a very conscious attempt to find more of a middle path. Educating for American Democracy (EAD) describes its work as the product of “…hundreds of ideologically, philosophically, and demographically diverse historians, political scientists, and educators.”
One of the best examples of EAD’s quest for a middle path was its decision to refer to our nation as a “constitutional democracy” rejecting both “Republic,” which is generally favored by those on the political right, and “Democracy” with no qualifier, that is often favored by those on the left. To many, this may seem a distinction without a difference but the two phrases actually reflect very different understandings of what stands at the center of our system of government; one that combines majoritarian features (like the US House of Representatives) with anti-majoritarian features (like the US Senate and Electoral College). In this case, words matter intensely as calling our form of government a “Republic” serves to normalize the antimajoritarian features while calling our government a “Democracy” makes those very same features stand out like the proverbial sore thumb. If this were an actual civics class, as opposed to a weekly “refresher” for adults, the question below would probably appear on the next test:
Why do you suppose those on the political right often refer to our government as a ‘Republic’ while those on the political left tend to call it a ‘Democracy’? [On this matter, the Constitution offers no help as it uses neither “Republic” nor “Democracy” when referring to our federal government]
Follow the link below to the Report of the Educating for American Democracy Initiative. Take a little time, examine the EAD material, and then make your own judgment as to whether what this group has proposed is better, worse, or just different than what the 1619 Project and 1776 Commission have each proposed.
Inspired Thoughts is a collection of highly curated content that embraces the spirit and purpose of The War Memorial: arts and culture, community enrichment, leadership, and patriotism.
Derived from the notion that learning from others is the key to success, Inspired Thoughts is meant to shine a light on those making a difference in the world around them. This collection features artists, poets, writers, architects, and every thought leader in-between. Inspired Thoughts is the strongest reflection of what The War Memorial stands for, and what we aim to be.
The content featured on Inspired Thoughts is curated by War Memorial leadership — we also look forward to featuring special guest curators in the near future. If you are interested in providing content for Inspired Thoughts, please email our Communications team at jkaminski@warmemorial.org.