The Lynx Voting Matters Project

We are at a difficult moment in the nation’s history. Political tensions across the country are high. A great number of Americans are dissatisfied with both major-party candidates for President and approval ratings for Congress and the Supreme Court are either at, or near, all-time lows. How did we get here and what can we do, as a nation, to move in a more positive direction? These are questions worthy of deep consideration and analysis.

Increasingly, it seems clear that we need new and better ways of engaging with information. The internet has given us easier access to more information than ever before. Yet much of the information we engage with is deeply confusing and contradictory. This makes it difficult to agree upon a common set of facts, which, in turn, jeopardizes the health of our democracy.

Another potential avenue for repair, it seems, lies in reviving democratic habits and civic ideals that, in recent years, have been allowed to wither. At this time of enormous political consequence, many of us have lost faith in the force of our vote and its ability to hold the powerful to account. What’s more, many have given up on democracy’s core tenet: that the surest way to secure our common interests is through negotiation and compromise.

Finally, history. History enables us to learn from others and thereby come to understand ourselves in new and often powerful ways. It invites us to examine sequences of events that, while never exactly the same, are also never entirely unique. Perhaps most importantly, it gives us examples of those who fought and suffered – often under more difficult conditions than our own – and who found some way to persist and, at times, even to thrive.

This is a challenging age, and the path forward – as ever – is unclear. Yet it is important to remember that there remains much that we can do to improve our lot.

Democracy grants us extraordinary powers. We can step up to those areas of self-governance that our leaders and previous generations have neglected. We can guard our freedoms and, by extension, the freedoms of our neighbors. We can choose to embrace the civic responsibilities that our political arrangement imposes on us. We can do all this because democracy, alone among all the forms of government, not only affords each of us the opportunity to reimagine our country and contribute to its collective good, it calls on us to do so.

In recent years, new threats to our freedoms and prosperity have emerged both at home and around the world. How can we, as citizens, resist these threats, work to hold the powerful to greater account, and, in the process, begin to build a brighter future? Over the course of 10 weeks, this series will offer 20 steps every one of us can take to help strengthen our society and reset the balance of power across our communities. Read on to learn more…

• Democracy Matters 1
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History is arguably the best source we have for understanding our lives. The present is over in the blink of an eye and the future is an unknowable commodity, but history is a rich source of valuable information applicable to the present and the future. The historian Will Durant once claimed, “The study of history is the study of the human soul.”

Whether we seek clarity about our daily lives or about the next political election, we can find guidance by analyzing the past and identifying patterns within it. Through the study of history, we gain the wisdom needed to navigate the complexities of today and the confidence required for confronting the uncertainties of tomorrow. Read on to learn more…

• History Matters 1
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For the first time in history, not only can we watch breaking news unfold in real time, but thanks to social media, we are now able to actively shape how that news is understood and transmitted to others. This dynamic means that individual opinions—often an unpredictable mix of truths, falsehoods, partial truths, and propaganda—can be posted at a rate that even professional fact-checkers and moderators struggle to handle.

Consequently, while social media offers us new freedoms, it also imposes new responsibilities. How can we meet these challenges responsibly? This series explores ways everyone can protect themselves and others when engaging with social media and the news. Read on to learn more…

• Information Matters 1
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See something missing? If you have a resource you have found helpful and would like to share, please email it to: democracylab@carrollcc.edu and we will add it to this page.

Important Voter Dates and Information
Resources for Identifying and Combatting Fake News
Propaganda and Logical Fallacies
Elections Security
Carroll County BoE Election Integrity