Name: Why ordinary people need to understand power
Uploaded: 2014-08-14T15:42:00Z
Duration: 17 min 5 s
Description: Far too many Americans are illiterate in power — what it is, how it operates and why some people have it. As a result, those few who do understand power wield disproportionate influence over everyone else. "We need to make civics sexy again," says civics educator Eric Liu. "As sexy as it was during the American Revolution or the Civil Rights Movement."

Eric Liu: Why ordinary people need to understand power

Why ordinary people need to understand power

Far too many Americans are illiterate in power — what it is, how it operates and why some people have it. As a result, those few who do understand power wield disproportionate influence over everyone else. "We need to make civics sexy again," says civics educator Eric Liu. "As sexy as it was during the American Revolution or the Civil Rights Movement."

Most people are illiterate in how power works, leaving a small group to shape laws and policies with little challenge. In cities from Boulder to Tuscaloosa, those who understand power structures can turn movements, friendships, and even biases into real influence. Civic engagement has dropped so low that politics feels subcontracted to professionals, while the rest lose faith and opt out. Reimagining civics as the active practice of power at the local level can spark widespread participation and meaningful change.