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Current Issues Blog & More

 

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.

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Page 8 of 23

Bill of Rights Day 2021: A Conversation on Freedom of Religion

Videos | December 16, 2021

During this #CloseUpConversations webinar, sponsored by Johnson and Johnson, we discuss internships and career pathways that drive policy-making on Capitol Hill.


Omnicron

The COVID-19 Omicron Variant

Post | December 9, 2021

On November 26, 2021, the World Health Organization announced the discovery of a new COVID-19 variant in South Africa. The same day, President Joe Biden closed the borders to travelers from South Africa and seven nearby nations (Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Malawi) in the hope of slowing the spread of the variant […]


Capitol Hill: Internships, Careers & Opportunities

Videos | November 23, 2021

During this #CloseUpConversations webinar, sponsored by Johnson and Johnson, we discuss internships and career pathways that drive policy-making on Capitol Hill.


CNN/KKTV 1

The Infrastructure Bill: What It Includes and What Remains To Be Done

Post | November 22, 2021

On November 15th, President Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). The bill represents the culmination of months of negotiations between House Democrats and Republicans as well as within the two parties. The goal of this US infrastructure bill is to significantly revitalize and modernize American infrastructure – the various systems, equipment, and […]


Carlisle Indian School Digital Resource Center via MDPI

Indian Boarding Schools: The Truth and Healing Commission

Post | November 9, 2021

In September 2021, a bipartisan group of senators and representatives reintroduced the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies in the United States Act, which would establish a commission to “investigate, document, and acknowledge past injustices of the federal government’s Indian Boarding School Policies.”1 The Truth and Healing Commission would use its findings […]


Brackeen v. Haaland, Part 2: Challenging the Indian Child Welfare Act

Post | November 4, 2021

Part 2: The Current Debate Facing the U.S. Supreme Court For more information about the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) of 1978 and the history of its enactment, please read part one of this series. Brackeen v. Haaland is a complex case that challenges the constitutionality of the ICWA. In the opinion of some, the […]


Brackeen v. Haaland: Challenging the Indian Child Welfare Act

Post | October 27, 2021

The case of Brackeen v. Haaland is currently facing the U.S. Supreme Court. The case calls into question the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) of 1978. The two major questions in the case are: (1) Is the ICWA unconstitutional on the basis of racial discrimination because of its favoring of Native families […]


A Supreme Court Preview

Videos | October 14, 2021

During this Close Up Conversations webinar, Close Up’s, Joe Geraghty discusses the Supreme Court with guest speaker Steven Schwinn, professor of law at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law.


Facebook Regulations

Should Facebook Be Regulated?

Post | October 12, 2021

Last week, Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, a former project manager for their Civic Integrity team, testified before Congress and criticized the social media company as a dangerous, unchecked force that was “buying its profits with our safety.”1 Haugen faulted the senior leadership at Facebook for identifying safety risks yet refusing to make the necessary changes […]


Supreme Court Preview: The 2021-2022 Term

Post | October 5, 2021

The Supreme Court begins its new term on the first Monday in October, a tradition that dates back to 1917.1 This year, that meant yesterday, Monday, October 4. In the term ahead, the Court is set to take up many key constitutional and legal issues. For the Supreme Court term preview, Close Up is offering […]


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