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The Close Up Current Issues Blog, updated weekly throughout the school year, helps teachers connect current events to their students and classrooms. We know that teaching the news can be time-consuming; by the time you find important issues and identify how to teach them, they are old news. That’s where our blog comes in: unpacking issues in the headlines by providing relevant context, links to classroom-ready news items, and suggested prompts for thoughtful discussion.
Post | May 18, 2021
President Joe Biden is currently promoting his plan to transform the U.S. economy.1 In a previous blog post, we explored one element of that plan: infrastructure. In this post, we will examine some details of the Biden administration’s American Families Plan. What is in the Plan? According to the White House, the American Families Plan […]
Post | May 10, 2021
President Joe Biden is currently campaigning to promote his administration’s infrastructure plan. The plan is intended to address three main areas of concern: crumbling or inadequate infrastructure, job creation and economic growth, and environmental issues. In this post, we will focus on the infrastructure goals of the plan. What is Infrastructure? Infrastructure refers to the […]
Post | April 23, 2021
On April 3, 2021, the Georgia General Assembly passed the Election Integrity Act of 2021. This new voting law enacts sweeping changes to Georgia’s election system which could have significant implications for the outcome of future elections. Republicans in Georgia and across the United States have hailed the law as a vital and necessary reform […]
Videos | April 9, 2021
During this Close Up Conversations webinar, Close Up’s, Mia Charity discusses ‘The Filibuster &. Reform’ with guest speaker Adam Jentleson. The Senate filibuster is arguably the most popular debate in Congress right now. Join us for a conversation with Adam Jentleson the author of Kill Switch: The Rise of the Modern Senate and the Crippling of […]
Post | April 6, 2021
The Senate is again considering changing its rules regarding the filibuster, a parliamentary procedure that gives individual senators the power to shape—and even block—legislation. The filibuster is “a loosely defined term for action designed to prolong debate and delay or prevent a vote on a bill, resolution, amendment, or other debatable question.”1 The filibuster is […]
Podcast | March 31, 2021
In this episode of Building Bridges we look at some additional remarkable women in American history: Lucy Parsons, Margaret Chase Smith, and Donna Brazile.
Post | March 29, 2021
The year 2021 has already been a ground-breaking one for women in national politics. Vice President Kamala Harris became the first woman and person of color to hold the office, the 117th Congress includes the largest number of female members in U.S. history, and President Joe Biden’s cabinet will ultimately include 11 women, setting a […]
Videos | March 26, 2021
During this Close Up Conversations webinar, Close Up’s, Mia Charity discusses the 26th Amendment with distinguished guest speakers: Les Francis, Patricia Keefer, and Yael Bromberg, Esq. This year marks 50 years since the passage and ratification of the 26th Amendment which lowered the voting age to 18 in all states. Check out this conversation […]
Post | March 22, 2021
Congress passed the 26th Amendment in March 1971; it was ratified by the states and signed by President Richard Nixon by July of that same year.1 The amendment lowered the voting age to 18. It reads: Section 1 The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to […]
Videos | March 12, 2021
During this Close Up Conversations webinar, Close Up’s, Mia Charity, discusses environmental justice issues with Dr. Regan F. Patterson of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.