Check out the article here:
👉 www.nationalcivicleague.org/ncr-article/...

A movement that builds bridges of trust, not walls of fear.

A movement that treats every act of service as an act of democratic defense.

Democracy doesn’t defend itself through fear or punishment, it defends and strengthens itself through connection, belonging, and a shared sense of purpose.

FDR launched the Civilian Conservation Corps under the New Deal. Kennedy launched the Peace Corps as part of his New Frontier. America needs a new endeavor for democracy — a national commitment to service and civic purpose equal to the scale of the threats we face.

Cuts to these programs don’t just hurt communities — they weaken the country’s democratic defenses at large.

If we want to restore civic trust, fight disinformation, and resist the current authoritarian drift, we need a new movement.

So when we talk about the Peace Corps or AmeriCorps, we shouldn’t see them as “nice-to-haves.”

We should see them as the immune system of our democracy.

Each volunteer is an antibody against apathy, cynicism, and hate.

This is critical national security infrastructure, and we need to build more.

Social science backs this up.

Immersive service experiences measurably reduce authoritarian and dominance-oriented worldviews — the psychological traits that can influence people to be vulnerable to demagogues and conspiracy theories.

Service literally rewires us for democracy.

I’ve seen it firsthand:

As a Peace Corps Volunteer in Mongolia.

As a police officer in San Francisco.

As a federal official working to mitigate insider threats and build accountability.

Everywhere I’ve served, I’ve seen the same truth: shared purpose inoculates against fear and division.

When people serve together — across lines of race, class, faith, or ideology, something profound happens:

Empathy & trust increases.

Fear of outgroups and the “other” decreases.

Service changes the brain — and, ultimately, the body politic at large.

And (this shouldn’t even need to be said): Enforcing the duly-enacted laws of your state — should immigration enforcement violate state laws against excessive force or assault under color of authority, for example — is not seditious conspiracy. The Supremacy Clause is not a “I do what I want” card.