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Essay on Who is a Good Citizen

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100 Words Essay on Who is a Good Citizen

Understanding a good citizen.

A good citizen is someone who respects others and their property. They are friendly, helpful, and considerate. They understand their rights and responsibilities as a member of a community. They always try to make their surroundings a better place for everyone.

Responsibilities of a Good Citizen

A good citizen always follows the rules and laws of their country. They pay their taxes on time and vote in elections to support democracy. They respect the rights of others and do not harm or disturb anyone. They help others in need and participate in community activities.

Qualities of a Good Citizen

A good citizen is honest, brave, and responsible. They always tell the truth and stand up for what is right. They take responsibility for their actions and do not blame others for their mistakes. They respect diversity and treat everyone equally.

Role of a Good Citizen in Society

A good citizen plays an important role in society. They contribute to the well-being of their community by volunteering, cleaning up the environment, and helping the less fortunate. They promote peace and harmony by treating others with kindness and respect.

250 Words Essay on Who is a Good Citizen

Who is a good citizen.

A good citizen is a person who does their best to make their country a better place. They respect the laws, rights, and freedoms of their country. They also care about the well-being of others in their community.

Respecting Laws

A good citizen follows all the rules and laws of their country. They know that rules are made to keep everyone safe and to make sure things are fair. They do not break laws, even if they think no one is watching.

Caring for Others

A good citizen cares about other people. They help those who need it. They might give food to a person who is hungry, help a neighbor with their work, or just be kind to someone who is having a bad day. They think about how their actions affect others.

Being Active in the Community

A good citizen is active in their community. They might vote in elections, attend town meetings, or join a local club or group. They want to be involved in making decisions that affect their community.

Protecting the Environment

A good citizen also cares about the environment. They do things like recycle, pick up litter, and use less water and electricity. They know that taking care of the environment is important for the future.

In conclusion, a good citizen is someone who respects laws, cares for others, is active in their community, and protects the environment. By doing these things, they help make their country a better place for everyone.

500 Words Essay on Who is a Good Citizen

A good citizen is someone who understands, respects, and follows the rules and laws of their country. They are a key part of any society and help in its smooth functioning. They know their rights but are equally aware of their responsibilities.

Respect for Rules and Laws

A good citizen always follows the rules and laws of their country. They understand that these rules are made for everyone’s safety and well-being. They also know that breaking these rules can lead to problems for them and others around them. For example, they follow traffic rules, pay taxes on time, and respect public property.

Active Participation

Good citizens are actively involved in their community. They vote in elections, attend local meetings, and voice their opinions on matters that impact their community. They understand that their opinion matters and that they can contribute to positive changes in their society.

Respect for Others

A good citizen respects other people, regardless of their race, religion, gender, or age. They treat everyone equally and do not discriminate. They understand that everyone is different and that these differences make their community diverse and vibrant. They also help others in need and are always ready to lend a helping hand.

Responsible Behavior

Good citizens display responsible behavior. They take care of their environment by not littering, recycling waste, and using resources wisely. They also take care of public property and do not damage it. They understand that the resources and facilities they enjoy are shared with others, and they need to use them responsibly.

Education and Awareness

A good citizen is educated and informed. They keep themselves updated about what is happening in their country and the world. They also understand the importance of education and encourage others to get educated. They know that an educated society is a progressive society.

In conclusion, a good citizen is a valuable asset to any country. They follow rules, respect others, participate actively in their community, behave responsibly, and promote education. They contribute positively to their society and inspire others to do the same. Being a good citizen is not just about enjoying rights but also about fulfilling responsibilities.

Remember, every small action counts. Even simple acts like throwing trash in the bin, helping an elderly person cross the road, or voting in elections can make you a good citizen. So, let’s strive to be good citizens and make our society a better place to live in.

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Home — Essay Samples — Environment — Global Citizen — The Importance of Being an Active and Responsible Citizen

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The Importance of Being an Active and Responsible Citizen

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Defining good citizenship, importance of good citizenship, role of college students in shaping communities.

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What Does it Mean to Be a Good Citizen?

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"We don't agree on everything—but we do agree on enough that we can work together to start to heal our civic culture and our country." CPL's James Piltch asked people all over the US what it means to be a good citizen .

What Is a “Good Citizen”? a Systematic Literature Review

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  • First Online: 01 September 2021

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  • Cristóbal Villalobos 23 ,
  • María Jesús Morel 23 &
  • Ernesto Treviño 24  

Part of the book series: IEA Research for Education ((IEAR,volume 12))

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3 Citations

The concept of “good citizenship” has long been part of discussions in various academic fields. Good citizenship involves multiple components, including values, norms, ethical ideals, behaviors, and expectations of participation. This chapter seeks to discuss the idea of good citizenship by surveying the academic literature on the subject. To map the scientific discussion on the notion of good citizenship, a systematic review of 120 academic articles published between 1950 and 2019 is carried out. The review of the literature shows that good citizenship is broadly defined, incorporating notions from multiple fields, although these are mainly produced in Western countries with comparatively higher income levels. Additionally, although there is no single definition of good citizenship, the academic literature focuses on three components: the normative, active, and personal dimensions. This systematic review informs the estimation of citizenship profiles of Chap. 3 using the IEA International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) 2016.

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who is the good citizen essay

Reflections on the Good Citizen

  • Citizenship norms
  • Good citizenship
  • Systematic review
  • International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS)

1 Introduction

The concept of “good citizenship” is part of a long-standing discussion in various academic fields, such as political science, education, sociology, anthropology, evolution, and history, among others. In addition, good citizenship involves various components, including values, norms, ethical ideals, behaviors, and expectations of participation. Finally, the idea of good citizenship is related to diverse contemporary issues, such as patterns of political participation, the meaning of democracy and human rights, the notion of civic culture, equal rights, and the role of technology in the digital era (Bolzendahl and Coffé 2009 ; Dalton 2008 ; Hung 2012 ; Noula 2019 ).

In this regard, the notion of good citizenship can be considered as a concept with three basic characteristics: multidisciplinary, multidimensional, and polysemic. Therefore, the definition of good citizenship is a topic of constant debate and academic discussion. This chapter seeks to discuss the idea of good citizenship, with the aim of contributing to the understanding of this phenomenon and its social, political, and educational implications. In this way, this chapter aims to map the academic discussion and literature regarding the notion of good citizenship, presenting the key debates about the limits and possibilities of this concept in the framework of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) 2016.

In order to organize this complex debate, we start from the premise that any notion of good citizenship is composed of the interaction of two definitions. On the one hand, it involves a certain notion of membership, that is, of belonging to a community. As Stokke ( 2017 ) shows, the definition of who is (and who is not) a citizen is, in itself, a subject of debate, since the definition of citizenship implies political, social, cultural, and legal components. On the other hand, the definition of good citizenship always implies a conceptual position regarding how citizens are expected to act and what they are expected to believe (the “public good” component). In this sense, the debate focuses on the types of behaviors that should be promoted and their ethical-political basis, which is highly dynamic depending on the cultural and historical context (Park and Shin 2006 ). Finally, in order to answer the question about the meaning of good citizenship, it is necessary to first decide who qualifies as a citizen, and how they are expected to behave.

Considering these objectives, the chapter is structured into five sections, including this introduction. The second section describes the systematic review methodology used to select the literature and analyze the discussion regarding the concept of good citizenship. The third and fourth sections describe the results of the analysis, mapping the main trends and characteristics of the academic discussion on good citizenship and exploring its different meanings. Finally, the fifth section presents the conclusions, focusing on the conceptual challenges and methodological limitations to be considered in future research.

2 Methodology

2.1 the systematic review.

We conducted a systematic review to map the academic discussion on good citizenship. This review seeks to identify, evaluate, and analyze the publications in relevant fields of study, in order to determine what has already been written on this topic, what works and what does not, and where new studies are needed (Petticrew and Roberts 2006 ). Through the definition of eligibility criteria, the systematic review is an explicit and reproducible methodology that allows for both an evaluation of the validity of the results of the selected studies (Higgins and Green 2011 ) and the objective valuation of evidence by summarizing and systematically describing the characteristics and results of scientific research (Egger 1997 ). In this regard, the systematic review, unlike other forms of literature review, allows for recognizing “gray” spaces in the literature, describing trends in academic research, and analyzing conceptual and methodological aspects of studies.

2.2 Procedure

The systematic review was conducted using five academic databases, including the main journals in the fields of education, social science, and the humanities. These databases are: (i) Journal Storage, JSTOR ( https://www.jstor.org ); (ii) Educational Resource Information Center, ERIC ( https://eric.ed.gov ); (iii) Springerlink ( https://link.springer.com ); (iv) WorldWideScience ( https://worldwidescience.org ); and (v) Taylor & Francis Group ( https://www.tandfonline.com ). For each search engine, the keywords used were: “good citizen” and “good citizenship.” Additionally, each search engine was tested with other related concepts, such as “citizenship norms,” “citizenship identities,” or “citizen norms.” The results showed that articles containing these latter concepts represented no more than 10% of new articles. For this reason, we decided to concentrate on the two keywords described above.

Considering the importance of these key concepts, the search was limited to those articles that contain these terms in the title, abstract, and/or full text. Of the five search engines, only two had the full-text option in the advanced search and only one allowed searching by keywords, then all results were filtered manually. The search was conducted from May to July 2019, obtaining 693 academic articles.

The search was restricted to those academic articles written in English and published between 1950 and 2019, as a way to study contemporary conceptualizations of good citizenship. We discarded letters to the editor, responses to articles, and book reviews. As a result, we obtained 693 articles to which, based on a full-text review, we applied an additional criterion, excluding those articles about other subjects or from other disciplines. Included in the first search exclusively for having the word “citizenship” in the abstract, there is a wide range of articles including studies on biology, entomology, and film studies. Similarly, with this search strategy we retrieved articles on a related topic but not specifically about citizenship (e.g., leadership, public participation, social values, and immigration), articles on the concept of corporate or organizational citizenship, and articles on social studies in the school curriculum and its contribution to the education of citizens.

After applying the abovementioned selection criteria, we analyzed the abstracts of the articles to verify that they were related to the general objective of the study. As a result, all articles were selected that sought (directly or indirectly) to answer the question, “what is a good citizen?” Specifically, this involved incorporating studies that: (i) study or analyze citizen norms in conceptual, historical, political, educational, or social terms; (ii) generate models or analytic frameworks that define variables or dimensions that should make up the concept of a good citizen; (iii) explore factors on how good citizenship occurs, studying the educational, institutional, and cultural factors that would explain this phenomenon; (iv) relate the expectations (or definitions) of a good citizen with other dimensions or aspects of the political or social behavior of the subjects. The research team, which was comprised of two reviewers, held a weekly discussion (six sessions in total) during which the selection criteria were discussed and refined. This analysis resulted in the selection of a total of 120 articles (see list in Appendix A ).

2.3 Analytical Strategy

The data collected in a systematic review may allow for a wide variety of studies, but the analysis depends on the purpose and nature of the data. Given that the review included quantitative and qualitative studies, as well as both theoretical and demonstrative essays, such heterogeneous literature does not allow for statistical analysis. As a result, the recommended methodology is to carry out a narrative synthesis and an analysis that focuses on relationships between different characteristics and the identification of gaps (Grant and Booth 2009 ; Petticrew and Roberts 2006 ).

The narrative synthesis is a process that allows for extracting and grouping the characteristics and results of each article included in the review (Popay et al. 2006 ), and can be divided into three steps: (i) categorization of articles; (ii) analysis of the findings within each category; and (iii) synthesis of the findings in the selected studies (Petticrew and Roberts 2006 ). The first step towards the narrative synthesis consisted of reading, coding, and tabulating the selected documents in order to describe their main characteristics. A set of categories was designed to classify documents according to four dimensions: general characteristics, purpose, methodology, and results.

To analyze these categories, we transformed data into a common numeric rubric and organized it for thematic analysis, using the techniques proposed by Popay et al. ( 2006 ). The first category was used to summarize the quantity and characteristics of the published studies, while the thematic analysis focused on systematically identifying the main, recurrent, and/or most important concepts of good citizenship.

3 The Concept of Good Citizenship in Academia

Despite being a topic of interest for several decades, academic production on good citizenship tends to be concentrated in the second decade of the 21st century. Since 2009, there has been an explosive increase in the number of scientific papers published on this topic (Fig.  1 ). Although an important part of this growth may be due to the global pressures of academic capitalism to publish in academic journals (Slaughter and Rhoades 2009 ), it could also be the case that academic communities have cultivated a growing interest in studying this issue.

figure 1

Academic papers by year of publication

Although few in number, the earliest articles published represent a landmark for the discussion. Thus, for example, the text of Almond and Verba ( 1963 ), which analyzes through interviews the perceptions of individuals in communities in five countries (United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, and Mexico) and highlights their different participation profiles, has been repeatedly cited in the discussion with 263 references (as of August 2019), according to Google Scholar. Another classic text is Ichilov and Nave ( 1981 ), which aims at understanding the different dimensions of citizenship by surveying young Israelis. To this end, it generates the following five criteria, which have been widely used in academic discussions: (i) citizenship orientation (affective, cognitive, or evaluative); (ii) nature of citizenship (passive or active); (iii) object of citizenship (political or non-political); (iv) source of demand (mandatory or voluntary); and (v) type of guidance (support principles or behavior).

The selected articles are geographically concentrated in two aspects: by institutional affiliation and by the location of their studies. Considering the institutional affiliation of the authors, 32.77% of the articles were produced in the United States, a figure that rises to more than 60% when the countries of Western Europe and Australia are included. This bias is maintained, although to a lesser extent, when analyzing the countries where the studies were carried out. Moreover, more than 50% of the studies were carried out in the United States, England, and the democracies of Western Europe. Africa (4.24%) and Latin America (2.54%) were the regions least represented in the studies. These characteristics, which tend to be representative of global academic production in the social sciences (Connell 2007 ), may encourage certain notions of good citizenship that are anchored in Anglo-Saxon traditions, such as the liberal conception of citizenship studied by Peled ( 1992 ), or more recently, the conception of active citizenship (Ke and Starkey 2014 ), both of which have had an important influence on academic discussion about good citizenship.

Finally, the third characteristic of academic production is related to the multiple research fields and diverse purposes of the studies that deal with the concept of good citizenship. Research on good citizenship is published in multiple disciplines. Of the articles included in the review, 82.29% are concentrated in three disciplines: education, political science, and sociology. However, there are also articles associated with journals of history, philosophy, anthropology, and law. Additionally, we identified six main objectives from the articles reviewed (Table  1 ). The most common objectives are related to bottom-up research, which seeks to gather information on how diverse populations understand good citizenship, and top-down research, which seeks to conceptualize and/or define the idea of good citizens based on conceptual, historical, or political analysis. In addition, there are a wide variety of studies that seek to explain good citizenship, as well as studies that use the idea of a good citizen to explain other behaviors, skills, or knowledge. In other words, in addition to being multidisciplinary, research on good citizenship has multiple purposes.

In sum, although the academic discussion on good citizenship has been mainly developed during the last two decades in the most industrialized Western countries, the academic research is a field of ongoing and open debate.

4 Understanding the Meaning of “Good Citizenship”

As an academic field with a lively ongoing discussion, the notion of good citizenship is associated with different sets of ideas or concepts. Some keywords were repeated at least three times in the articles reviewed (Table  2 ). Only those articles that used a keyword format were included. The most frequent concepts are related to education, norms, social studies, political participation, and democracy.

This indicates that, first, studies tend to associate good citizenship with civic norms and citizen learning, highlighting the formative nature of the concept. Second, studies that associate good citizenship with other dimensions of citizenship (such as knowledge or civic attitudes) or contemporary global problems (such as migration) are comparatively scarcer.

Another way to approach the concept of good citizenship is by analyzing the definitions proposed by the authors in the articles studied. Most of the articles propose characteristics or aspects of good citizenship (in 43.8% of the cases) that, instead of creating new definitions, are often based on existing political, non-political, liberal, or philosophical concepts. In this regard, many papers define good citizenship based on specific behaviors. In contrast, other authors (18.6%) refer to citizenship rules when it comes to voting or participating in politics, thereby seeking to relate the concept of the good citizen with a specific civic attitude—participation in elections. Finally, a large group of studies define good citizenship in terms of the values, virtues, or qualities of a good citizen (22.6%). Within the group of studies that propose new definitions, it is possible to identify two main categories: studies that propose types of citizenship, such as Dalton ( 2008 ), distinguishing between “duty” and “engaged” citizenship, and works, such as Westheimer and Kahne ( 2004 ), which differentiate between “personal responsible citizenship,” “justice-oriented citizenship,” and “participatory citizenship.”

Finally, the meaning of good citizenship can be analyzed by studying the variables used in the studies. Among the quantitative studies included in the review, only 28.3% use international surveys such as ICCS, the Center for Democracy and Civil Society (CDACS), the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP), the United Citizenship, Involvement, Democracy (CID) Survey, and the European Social Survey (ESS). Each of these surveys contained a slightly different definition of good citizenship and the variables used to measure the concept (Table  3 ).

In general, the indicators used to measure citizenship in the different surveys share certain similarities. Variables associated with rules (such as obeying the law or paying taxes) are present in all surveys. Additionally, variables related to participation also have an important presence, especially (although not only) related to voting in national elections. To a lesser extent, surveys include variables related to solidarity (supporting people who are worse off than yourself) as well as attitudes related to critical thinking and civic culture (knowing the history of the country, thinking critically).

5 Discussion and Conclusions

The concept of good citizenship can be considered an umbrella term, which includes ethical, political, sociological, and educational aspects and discussions about who qualifies as a citizen and how they should act. The systematic review has shown that good citizenship is broadly defined, although these notions are mainly valued in Western countries with comparatively higher income levels.

For this reason, the definition of good citizenship used is, in large part, highly dependent on the research objective of the academic endeavor. In our case, the analysis is based on ICCS 2016, which defines good citizenship in relation to notions such as conventional citizenship, social movement citizenship, and personal responsibility citizenship (Köhler et al. 2018 ). The variables included in ICCS 2016 are related to the three main dimensions of good citizenship: normative, active, and personal. These three components of good citizenship have been essential in the academic discussion in the last seven decades, constituting the central corpus of the concept, although this definition does not incorporate current discussions on good citizenship, which focus, for example, on the notion of global citizenship (Altikulaç 2016 ) or the idea of digital citizenship (Bennett et al. 2009 ). These latter concepts are part of the ongoing debate on good citizenship, although it seems that more work is needed to better understand how these notions of citizenship are related to the ways in which individuals or groups in society relate to power and exercise it to shape the public sphere.

This systematic review has mapped the academic discussion to date on good citizenship. However, despite its usefulness, this review has a number of limitations. Firstly, it summarizes and analyzes the academic discussion, ignoring the gap between the scientific debate on good citizenship and the social discussion related to this subject. Secondly, it focuses on English-language literature, which may result in a bias towards publications produced in Western countries. In spite of these limitations, the review allows us to study the process of defining the concept of good citizenship, and to identify the main debates related to this notion, which is the central focus of this book.

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Hung, R. (2012). Being human or being a citizen? Rethinking human rights and citizenship education in the light of Agamben and Merleau-Ponty. Cambridge Journal of Education, 42 (1), 37–51.

Ichilov, O., & Nave, N. (1981). The Good Citizen as viewed by Israeli adolescents. Comparative Politics, 13 (3), 361–376.

Ke, L., & Starkey, H. (2014). Active citizens, good citizens, and insouciant bystanders: The educational implications of Chinese university students’ civic participation via social networking. London Review of Education, 12 (1), 50–62. https://doi.org/10.18546/LRE.12.1.06 .

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Noula, I. (2019). Digital citizenship: Citizenship with a twist? Media@LSE Working Paper Series. London, United Kingdom: London School of Economics and Political Science.

Park, C.-M., & Shin, D. C. (2006). Do Asian values deter popular support for democracy in South Korea? Asian Survey, 46 (3), 341–361.

Peled, Y. (1992). Ethnic democracy and the legal construction of citizenship: Arab citizens of the Jewish state. The American Political Science Review, 86 (2), 432–443.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank their research sponsors, the Center for Educational Justice ANID PIA CIE160007, as well as the Chilean National Agency of Research and Development through the grants ANID/FONDECYT N° 1180667, and ANID/FONDECYT N° 11190198.

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Centro de Estudios de Políticas y Prácticas en Educación (CEPPE-UC), Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile

Cristóbal Villalobos & María Jesús Morel

Center UC for Educational Transformation, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile

Ernesto Treviño

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Correspondence to Cristóbal Villalobos .

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Center for Educational Justice, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile

Centro de Medición MIDE UC, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile

Diego Carrasco

Centre for Political Research, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium

Ellen Claes

University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

Kerry J. Kennedy

The following list of publications is the reviewed references for the systematic review conducted in this chapter.

Adler, S. A., & Kho, E. M. (2011). Educating citizens: A cross-cultural conversation. Journal of International Social Studies , 1 (2), 2–20.

Agbaria, A. K., & Katz-Pade, R. (2016). Human rights education in Israel: Four types of good citizenship. Journal of Social Science Education , 15 (2), 96–107. https://doi.org/10.4119/UNIBI/jsse-v15-i2-1455 .

Ahmad, I. (2017). Political science and the good citizen: The genealogy of traditionalist paradigm of citizenship education in the American school curriculum. Journal of Social Science Education , 16 (4), 38–48. https://doi.org/10.4119/UNIBI/jsse-v16-i4-1581 .

Ahmad, I. (2004). Islam, democracy and citizenship education: An examination of the social studies curriculum in Pakistan. Current Issues in Comparative Education , 7 (1), 39–49.

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Villalobos, C., Morel, M.J., Treviño, E. (2021). What Is a “Good Citizen”? a Systematic Literature Review. In: Treviño, E., Carrasco, D., Claes, E., Kennedy, K.J. (eds) Good Citizenship for the Next Generation . IEA Research for Education, vol 12. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-75746-5_2

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Good Citizenship and Global Citizenship Essay

Introduction, good citizen needed to make a global citizen, global citizenship needed to make a good citizen, works cited.

The 21st Century has witnessed integration and increased cultural interaction among people on a previously unprecedented scale. This frequent interaction between people from varied countries and cultures has risen mostly as a result of the advances that have been made in transport and communication technologies.

As a result of this interaction, there has been the major integration of economies and cultures in a process known as globalization. As a result of globalization, governments are increasingly being required to link together different levels of their activities: national and global. This has resulted in the building of a global citizenry which sees the world as their “country”.

However, the global citizen continues to be heavily influenced by the traditional notion of citizen, a term that is “wrapped up in rights and obligations and in owing allegiance to a sovereign state” (Lagos 1). This paper shall argue that it is hugely necessary for one to be a good citizen so as to become a global citizen. To reinforce this claim, this paper shall analyze the extent to which it is necessary to be a “good citizen” in order to be a “global citizen”, and vice versa.

The world is full of social injustices mostly perpetrated by the stronger members of the society against the weaker ones. A defining characteristic of a good national citizen in such an environment is his/her concern about the injustices that occur within their boundaries.

This concern normally manifests itself in protests and public demonstrations calling for action by the government in place to counter the perceived injustices. A report by the World Bank demonstrates that the global citizen shows the same concern for the welfare of the globe and is moved to free their fellow men from dehumanizing conditions (1). As such, it takes a good citizen to make the global citizen who will be keen to decry social injustices against other human beings.

Core to the agendas of the good citizen is the preservation of peace in his country. A good citizen will strive to preserve peace especially within the boundaries of his/her country. This is mostly because the citizen recognizes the destruction and loss that war culminates in. For this reason, the good citizen seeks to mobilize against all wars through peaceful demonstrations and advocacy against wars.

The United Nations declares that peace is a precondition of global citizenship. The global citizen views war and strife as being contrary to his/her agenda. A good citizen who is committed to preserving peace is therefore needed to make a global citizen.

One of the attribute that a good citizen in any democratic society should possess is an understanding of public policies in his/her country. An understanding of this policies will result in enlightenment on one’s country position on issues such as energy, free trade, agriculture and the environment to name but a few.

It is only by understanding the public policies adopted by one’s country that a person can act so as to shape certain conditions such as protection of natural habitat. A global citizen is also concerned with the protection of the environment and establishment of free trade. It would therefore take a good citizen who is well versed with public policies to make a global citizen.

A good citizen is concerned about the impact that his individual actions and daily personal choices have on the country. This is an ideal that is also desirable in the global citizen since as a global citizen should make his/her decisions bases on an awareness of the impact that the decisions will have on the planet. A good citizen who is aware and conscious of the impact that his actions have on a larger scale is therefore needed to make a global citizen.

The international community is characterized by a rich diversity of cultures among its people. The global citizen is therefore prepared to operate amicably in this intercultural environment. The global citizen realizes that there should be unity in diversity and nobody has the right to impose their ideology on anybody or any group of persons.

An ideal citizen should also demonstrate this values and pay respect to people from different cultures and strives to live harmoniously with them. The good citizen should recognize that differences may exist within members of the country and this should not be a cause of strive. By acting as a global citizen who operates in a multicultural sphere, a person can be a good citizen and exist harmoniously with other citizens of varied backgrounds.

Lagos documents that while globalization is acclaimed for having opened up the world and led to the emergence of a “global village”, the same force has paradoxically resulted in localization and local communities have taken greater and greater importance (9). In such an environment, it is the global citizen who holds the separate entities together and seeks to iron out the differences that the various local communities seek to advance.

For a citizen to pass for a good citizen in such an environment (the environment where local communities have taken great importance), he must have the global perspective of the global citizen. It is only by taking the global perspective that a citizen can give fair consideration to ideas with which they disagree.

Global citizenship is increasingly working towards making the planet sustainable for all people. The efforts directed to this end are mostly in the form of advocacy for conservation of the environment, reduction of pollution and the reliance on renewable sources of power. A good citizen is supposed to work towards the preservation of the country’s resources for future resources. As such, the good citizen has to be a global citizen who is concerned with making the planet sustainable.

As a global citizen, one is expected to be non judgmental and overlook the religious differences that divide humanity. The UN states that the global citizen should have values such as “rights to freedom of thought, conscience and religion”. A good citizen should also have these values enshrined in them. A good citizen should avoid engaging in religious discrimination since this threatens unity among the citizens of the nation.

This paper has demonstrated that being a global citizen is intrinsically connected to being a good citizen. As such, being a global citizenship implies a responsibility to be a good citizen. However, there are instances where being a global citizen may cause one to be a “bad citizen”.

For example, a global citizen is not expected to advocate for war or side with any party during war. Good citizenship calls for one to back their country when it is involved in a war. Acting as a global citizen in such instances can therefore prevent one from being an ideal citizen.

Lagos indicates that a citizen obtains a certain amount of protection from his/her country in return for abiding to some restrictions that the government may impose on him/her (3). A good citizen is therefore required to abide by some laws and allow some bureaucratic control from his/her nation.

A global citizen on the other hand does not have any kind of protection and has some amount of degree from bureaucratic control. Lagos states that the hallmark of global citizen is the lack of allegiance to any body of laws to control the individual. In this light, being a global citizen goes contrary to what being a good citizen entails.

This paper set out to argue that to a large extent, it is necessary to be a “good citizen” in order to be a “global citizen” and vice versa. The paper performed a detailed analysis of how a person may be obligated to be a good citizen so as to qualify as a global citizen and vise versa.

This paper has shown that global citizens borrow most of their rights and obligations from the traditional “citizen” who is defined by a civic engagement to a nation existing in a particular geography. In particular, the paper demonstrates that values such as tolerance, civic education are innate in both the good citizen and the global citizen. However, the paper has also shown that global citizen differs significantly from the citizen and in some instances, being a global citizen may cause one not to fulfill his role as a good citizen.

Lagos, Taso. Global Citizenship- Towards a Definition . 2002. Web.

The World Bank. “Global Citizenship- Ethical Challenges Ahead”. Conference on Leadership and Core Values . 2002. Web.

UN. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 2010. Web.

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Essay on Responsibilities of a Good Citizen for Students [500+ Words]

December 10, 2020 by Sandeep

Essay on Responsibilities of a Good Citizen: Responsibility of a good citizen is to sacrifice everything for the motherland. Respecting the culture & heritage of their own country is one of the duties of a citizen. He or She must always keep in mind to raise the future of his country. Unity & prosperity must be the priorities of a good citizen.

Essay on Good Citizen 500 Words in English

Below we have provided the responsibilities of a good citizen essay, written in easy and simple words for class 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 school students.

We are born and raised in a single country, sometimes different countries., regardless of location, we incorporate the values of our respective cultures in the way we act and treat other people. Being a citizen of a country, however, is much more than some words and a stamp on endless paperwork. Along with it, one bears an ideology that connects them to other citizens of that country, regardless of their race, religion, or gender. Being a citizen gives a person all the rights to which the constitution says they are entitled.

This is why the process of citizenship of any country is a long and complicated one since it means that the person will legally have a voice in matters of the country. It also means that they will have to abide by the laws of that country, out of respect for the nation as a whole, as well as to uphold law and order. To be a responsible citizen, the person must educate themselves about their country and culture. This begins by conversing with people and understanding their way of life. It also involves an awareness of the country’s history and heritage.

This would mean reading about important figures in the country’s history, crucial events that led the country to where it currently stands, and other aspects such as the history of art and literature. It is also crucial that people who want to be responsible citizens know the diversity of different socioeconomic groups in the country. They must learn about the situation in the country in regard to equality in terms of race, religion, gender, and several other factors. One must learn about how minority groups are treated in the country, and if they are discriminated against, then the person must be an advocate to protect their rights.

A responsible citizen must always stay updated with the news. This does not mean simply reading the headlines on the front page of a newspaper- it means reading the articles thoroughly to understand the state of the nation. In an age where fake news is rampant, one must also not limit themselves to a single news source. They should try understanding an issue by learning about it from different news channels and articles by different newspapers. They will always provide different perspectives on the same issue, and this knowledge will allow the person to gain a better understanding of what their stance ought to be.

One must also learn about their own purchases- in an age of globalization, the products we use can be made in one country with materials from another. As a responsible citizen, one must not completely boycott products from other countries but should try to use local goods and services as much as possible. By doing so, the person is helping the economy of the country as well as financing local households. Volunteering and contributing to community development efforts is an important step in helping the country progress. One does not have to have widespread connections with major NGOs to volunteer- simply helping a disabled neighbour with their groceries also counts.

One can volunteer in local homeless shelters, orphanages, animal shelters, retirement homes, as well as other educational institutions like struggling schools and nurseries. If one does not have the time in their schedule to volunteer physically, they can instead choose to donate to charity. However, one must always donate wisely, because some charities are dishonest and lack transparency in terms of what actually happens with the funds from the donation. Therefore, always research the charity before donating to it.

However, supporting the community isn’t limited merely to volunteering with organizations or donating- it also involves supporting art, music, and cultural activities. One should support local artists by promoting their work and also stay on the lookout for shows, exhibitions, and other cultural events. By attending and promoting them, the person will not only develop a healthy sense of what truly constitutes entertainment but also allow the culture of the country to flourish in all areas truly. Being a good citizen involves being cooperative, friendly, considerate, and dedicated to fostering a positive environment in the community.

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Essay on “A Good Citizen” Complete Essay for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation and other classes.

A Good Citizen

Essay No. 01

Citizen is one of the most commonly used word in a democracy. It is used at all levels of politics. A citizen is a person who enjoys rights and performs her/his duties in a state. Every Indian living in India is not citizen. To live in India does not make a person citizen. A citizen is one who is a member of the State and took part in the process of making government. A person who is ruled by laws but has no political rights, is not a citizen.

The term citizen was linked with the rise of democracy. Where one has political rights, the right to vote and the right to participate in decision- making on important questions, that one is citizen. In 1789 the word ‘citizen’ became popular after the French Revolution. It was said, “All citizens are equal. They have equal rights.”

A good citizen is one who is conscious of both rights and duties. For instance, the right to vote is one of our most important rights and it is our duty also to exercise the right to vote. If a person does not vote she  or he cannot be considered a good citizen, though otherwise she or he may be a good person. Good citizen  should not only be conscious of their own right alone, but also give the government what is its due. They should obey laws that are made by the legislature and pay taxes. These are their duties towards the government. But they must also perform their duties to other citizens. And the most important duty of every citizen is to respect the rights of others. Our constitution gives everyone the right to practice one’s religion. Every citizen , should practise religion in her / his own way; but in doing so one must respect the right of other citizens to practise their  religion in the way they like. The qualities of good citizens must therefore, include a consciousness of their own rights, tolerance for others and respect for laws.

A democratic state particularly depends on the quality of its citizens. If citizens do not take interest in politics, a democratic state might also gradually become undemocratic. Conversely , democracy can be strengthened if the  rights of others; it means that they know the demand what they can claim from the government. They also know what the government can claim from them. The quality of democracy improves if the citizens from all walks of life take part in its activates with interest.

A good citizen is always loyal. He is loyal to the president, because  he stands for all that is best in the laws of his country. A good citizen is also devoted to his country. He thinks that as his parents gave him natural life, so he owes his civic life to  his country. He , therefore, calls his country his motherland, and is ever ready to lay down even his life for her sake.  

A good citizen always respects the laws of his country. He obeys all the laws of the land. He goes even further, he does not keep the law himself, but is the enemy of all those who break the law. He has no sympathy for thieves  , criminals and cheats. He will assist the police. He is, therefore, always ready to public. He is therefore, always ready to put down crime and help the guardians of law in arresting criminals.

A good citizen always takes an interest in the welfare of his country. He has  a vote, and he uses it not to further his own  interests or those of the party he belongs to, but to help his country as a whole. He is always ready to help forward good causes. He is most active when illiteracy is to be removed, or when the sanitation of the town is to be improved, or when a dishonest person is to be punished. If a school is to be opened, a dispute is to be ended, a disease is to be checked, a road is to be built, or any other work of public utility is to be taken up, he is most energetic and helpful.

In this way a good citizen believes in co-operation with  other citizen for the common good. he feels that the members of community are like the different limbs of a body. The head thinks for the hand, the hand works for the belly and the belly supplies nourishment to all. Similarly, all the members of a community work for the common  good.

It is not easy to be good citizen because a good citizen has to conquer his selfishness. A good citizen cares more for his duties that is what he can do for the country.

Essay No. 02

Duties of a Good Citizen

A citizen is a person who lives in a particular country for a long time. He may be born in the country or not but, by virtue of his long stay in the country he earns the right to the citizenship of the country and starts being so called. The basic difference in the acquired citizenship after stay and that of being a citizen by birth is that, when a person acquires it, it is to be by an application for the same. When a person is born in a place, he is automatically a citizen of it, and does not have to apply for it. Now, as we all know that man, no matter where he stays in the family, in the society, in the office or in the country, he has some obligations towards them. These obligations of an individual are called duties.

Thus, in all his activities, man has some duties, and so as a citizen also man has some obligations to the country of his citizenship. In this Essay we will discuss the duties of a man as a citizen of a country. When a person belongs to a particular country whether the country of his birth or the country that he has adopted due to a long stay, it is to be remembered that, the country has nurtured him. He has grown there, avails of all facilities and advantages that accrue to the people of the country and has been granted all kinds of rights of the citizens of that country. This is because it is all necessary for the healthy growth of the individual. If he was not to be given all that, he may not have been able to grow to his full bloom. This much is fine, but, this is only one side of the coin of citizenship. When on the one hand an individual is given so much, the other side of the coin would obviously be to given to an individual clarify and express his duties. For, let us never forget that all rights have their corresponding duties. Every right that a human being enjoys in any sphere of life, there are his corresponding duties that go hand in hand with these rights. Thus, on the one hand are the rights of the citizen and the other side are his duties.

 A good citizen has to fulfil several duties in order to honestly enjoy all his rights. The first duty of a good citizen is to understand his rights and enjoy them but, with wisdom and an analytical mind. He must be loyal to the country that gives him all that it has, to enjoy and grow. He must consider the country of his living, as his own mother, for, just like the mother helps a child to grow, so does the country provide for him all that he needs to grow in every way, physically, mentally, and spiritually. Then when a country gives so much, is it not its right to demand loyalty from the individual? How can the country ever expect or accept disloyalty from a man it helps live and grow. How can disloyalty to a mother be accepted? Such breach of faith and loyalty, to my mind should be considered as a grave offence. Besides, can we ever disown a mother? Thus a good citizen is one who is always found to be proud of belonging to his country – whether of birth or after living.

The second quality of a good citizen is that he should always follow all the laws of the land meticulously with the greatest of caution. He should never be found breaking or Flouting  any law.

He must love and respect all his fellow citizens who are to him like good citizen lives, must feel his presence as a good person, a reliable person and as a loving and helpful person. He himself must be a good brother/sister to the others living  in that country his brothers and sisters. The society in which the Besides being good, a duty of a good citizen also extends to his helping in the development of the country of his residence, because of the simple reason that, it is his, it belongs to him. Respect for all that belongs to that country is also one great quality expected from a good citizen.

Thus, a good citizen is one who adjusts with his environment, lives up to the expectations of his fellowmen, according to all norms and rules of the country. He does not act in any way that brings any sort of dishonor to the country. With all these essential qualities, any individual belonging to any country can be called a good citizen fulfilling these norms will be termed as a good citizen in any country.

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who is the good citizen essay

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Good Citizen Paragraph & Composition

A Good Citizen Paragraph

Table of Contents

Duties of a Citizen Essay 300 Words

By: Haque , Words: 300, For class 9-10/SSC

Write an essay/composition about the duties of a citizen. Use the following hints: “meaning of citizen”, “rules and laws”, “lacking in a civic sense”, “your expectation”.

Citizen primary means one who lives in a city. But the term is usually used to mean belonging to a state in a broad sense.

There are certain rules of conduct for the members of every society so that there is peace and harmony among them. Some of these rules are written laws, and anyone who breaks them is punished by the court. But there are many unwritten rules which are no less binding on every member of society. The peace and happiness of the society depend a good deal upon the proper observance of these rules too. A good citizen follows these unwritten rules of conduct in the way he obeys written laws.

It is a pity that many in our country are indifferent to these unwritten rules of humane and social behavior. We often throw banana peels on the road, which can cause serious injuries to anyone who slips. We spit and throw garbage whenever we want. This makes the roads and the environment dirty. We waste filtered water by leaving the taps open. We have also a bitter experience of the use made of loudspeakers without any thought of the sufferings of people nearby.

All these common experiences show that we are lacking in a civic sense. A good citizen not only avoids breaking the rules himself but also tries to make sure that the rules are not broken by others. We wish to see our society peaceful. But we do not fulfill our responsibility to build a peaceful society. Society cannot do much unless we allow it. So, it is our duty to try to correct people whenever we see them doing something wrong. We will encourage everyone to be polite, courteous and to follow social and state norms.

Qualities of a Good Citizen Essay

Words: 330 | for Class 9-10/SSC

A good citizen is someone who actively participates in the community and works to make it a better place. They are responsible, respectful, and engaged members of society who take an active role in the civic life of their community.

One of the most important qualities of a good citizen is responsibility. This means taking ownership of one’s actions and being accountable for their impact on the community. A responsible citizen pays their taxes, follows the laws, and participates in the democratic process by voting in elections. They also take care of the environment and actively work to improve it.

Respect is another crucial quality of a good citizen. This means treating others with kindness and courtesy, and valuing their opinions and perspectives. A respectful citizen listens to and considers the views of others, and actively works to promote understanding and unity in the community.

Engagement is also an important quality of a good citizen. This means actively participating in the community and working to make it a better place. Engaged citizens volunteer in their community, participate in local government, and work to address issues that affect their community. They also stay informed about local and national issues and use their voices to advocate for positive change.

To be a good citizen, one must also possess a sense of civic duty. This means recognizing the importance of contributing to the well-being of the community and working to make it a better place. A good citizen actively participates in the civic life of their community and takes an active role in making it a better place for all.

In conclusion, a good citizen is someone who is responsible, respectful, engaged, and possesses a sense of civic duty. These qualities are essential for promoting the well-being of the community and working towards a better future for all. By actively participating in the community, being responsible and respectful to others, and staying informed and engaged, anyone can strive to be a good citizen.

A Paragraph about a Good Citizen

In 200 words, for class 8 to 12

A good citizen is a person who abides by the rules of his society and country, and fulfills his responsibilities as a citizen. A good citizen is first and foremost a good person. He wants peace for all and never harms others. He doesn’t quarrel with others, but always tries to resolve the conflicts of others. A good citizen wishes good for his country and loves it. If he is eligible to pay taxes, he pays it regularly, and works as hard as he can for the development of the country. He himself doesn’t waste state resources and doesn’t allow others to do so. A good citizen never thinks of earning in a dishonest way. He makes his living honestly . He tries his best to remove bribery and corruption from the society. To build a better society, he tries to help law enforcement agencies prevent drug addiction. After all, a good citizen is a patriot, he never does anything that degrades the dignity of his country. Thus a good citizen is the main asset of a country. Good citizens are very important in building a developed and peaceful society. Therefore, we should all strive to be good citizens.

A Paragraph on a Good Citizen

In 150 words, for class 5 to 10

Write a paragraph about your idea of A Good Citizen. Think of a particular citizen you have known. Describe some of rights and duties to the state.

A citizen is a member of state in which he lives and enjoys some rights. I have known a citizen who is my neighbor . His name is Mr. N. Islam. He lives in the country. He is loyal to the country. He never does anything as against the interest of the country. He obeys the law of the country. He exercises his vote in election honestly. Above all, he is patriotic. He loves his country and his countrymen from the core of his heart. His love is not narrow-minded and selfish. He pays his taxes regularly. He also does some other duties. During the natural calamities, he stands by the people. He has set up a night school to teach the illiterate people. He lives in peace and good understanding with others in the society. He is physically healthy. In fact, he is an asset of our country.

A Good Citizen Paragraph

In 130 words, for class 5 to 8

The prerequisite for building a peaceful country is to create good citizens. The identity of a good citizen is that he is a good man. He is honest and kind. He abides by the rules of religion and the laws of the state. He is an educator because he knows that through education people become aware of their responsibilities and rights. A good citizen wants peace and order in the society. That is why when he sees injustice or irregularity somewhere, he tries to resist and protest. He did his best to promote education, health and justice in his area and protect the environment . As a good citizen, he is always vigilant against corruption and waste of government resources. Indeed, a good citizen is the most valuable asset of a society and country.

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who is the good citizen essay

Handout A – Background Essay: What Does it Mean to Be a Citizen?

who is the good citizen essay

Directions: Read the essay and respond to the Review Questions at the end.

What is a Citizen?

The term, “citizen” is related to the Latin term, civitas, meaning “city,” and referred in early times to an inhabitant of a city. In modern times it denotes a legally recognized member of a state who is entitled to certain rights and bears certain responsibilities. In the United States, our understanding of what it means to be a citizen comes from a number of influences that predate the U.S. Constitution, which did not initially define citizenship, but left it to each of the states to determine the qualifications for participation in government. To the ancient Greeks, a citizen was a member of the community who participates in public affairs through informed, reasoned debate and discussion, respectfully considering the views of others. Aristotle taught that a citizen is capable of both ruling and being ruled through active participation in deliberation and decision-making. In the Roman Republic, civitas consisted of those city residents who were educated and had the right to vote and hold office. Ideally, they exercised moderation and good judgment by voting for the good of the people, sharing in the rights and responsibilities of self-government.

Why did the Founders think virtue is necessary?

Building on this underpinning, the Founders of the United States took the position that citizens must exercise certain knowledge, skills, dispositions, and virtues in self-government. Among the many observations of Founders regarding the important role of a citizen are the following:

  • John Adams wrote, “Public virtue cannot exist in a nation without private [virtue], and public virtue is the only foundation of republics.” John Adams to Mercy Otis Warren, April 16, 1776
  • Benjamin Franklin wrote, “Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become more corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” Letter to Messrs, the Abbes Chalut, and Arnaud, April 17, 1787
  • James Madison stated: “To suppose that any form of government will secure liberty or happiness without any virtue in the people, is a chimerical [imaginary] idea.” Speech in the Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 20, 1788
  • Madison also wrote, “As there is a degree of depravity in mankind which requires a certain degree of circumspection and distrust, so there are other qualities in human nature which justify a certain portion of esteem and confidence. [America’s republican form of government] presupposes the existence of these qualities in a higher degree than any other form.” (Federalist No. 55, 1788).
  • Thomas Jefferson wrote: “Convinced that the people are the only safe depositories of their own liberty, and that they are not safe unless enlightened to a certain degree, I have looked on our present state of liberty as a short-lived possession unless the mass of the people could be informed to a certain degree.” Letter to Littleton Waller Tazewell, 1805.

Ratified in 1868, the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution provides the legal definition of U.S. citizenship, stating, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and the State wherein they reside.” For purposes of this study, we will use the following description:

A citizen in a free society is a person who functions privately and publicly  according to principles of moral and ethical excellent essential to leading a worthwhile life and to effective self-government. A citizen seeks to be active in public life, demonstrating civic virtues in everyday life and solving community problems.

What virtues are necessary in a free society, and who is responsible for cultivating them among the citizens?

If citizens are to be free, how is it appropriate for government to be concerned about character formation? What does it mean to be free? The Founders believed that all humans are born with certain natural rights, and that legitimate government is based on the will of the people expressed through the laws they make for themselves through their representatives. Self-government in civil society depends on certain attributes of character, but the government is not the primary institution responsible for inculcating those virtues. Rather, generating the necessary knowledge, skills, and dispositions is primarily the responsibility of families. The first and most powerful influences on character come from experiences and expectations learned in the family setting. In the endeavor to develop decent human beings who know how to work with one another, solve problems, and resolve disputes productively, families are supported by private institutions such as religious institutions and civic associations. Government plays a secondary role in encouraging these qualities in a variety of ways, including through its provision of tax-supported community schools.

There are many virtues that contribute to civil society, but the Founders’ public and private writings tell us that many of them understood at least the following attributes of character to be necessary: justice, responsibility, courage, moderation, respect, initiative, honor, perseverance, self-reliance, and civic knowledge.

To preserve freedom citizens must first understand what justice is and have the courage to assert themselves when their rights or the rights of others are violated. If individuals are to be free, they must exercise self-reliance and responsibility to provide for themselves and their families. They must also respect others enough to behave generously when other community members face hardship. Another outgrowth of respect for others is that individuals exercise moderation in their thoughts and actions in order to listen and engage in civil discourse. Communities built on this foundation also require individuals who apply initiative to act energetically in solving problems, perseverance because problems often do not yield to easy solutions, and honor so that people can trust one another to do the right thing. Civic knowledge is necessary so that people understand their rights and can act with wisdom based on evidence and reason. In addition to applying these virtues in their own lives, citizens must hold their elected officials accountable to these standards. Seeking to serve the public in a representative office is a heavy responsibility, and voters must exercise vigilance and wisdom as they mark their ballots. What principles guided the Founders in establishing the structure of the U.S. Constitution?

Based on their long and diligent study of the kinds of governments that been established in human history, Founders like James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, James Wilson, Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin, and George Mason, urged that certain principles must be incorporated in the framework of government in order for it to do its main job, which was protecting the natural rights of the citizens. Those principles of constitutional government included rule of law and due process, the idea that government and citizens alike abided by the same laws regardless of political power, and that those laws must reflect the virtue of justice. Because all humans are born with equal and inalienable rights, no one is born with a natural right to rule over others, so legitimate government is based on the principle of consent of the governed. In a large and complex society, the principle of consent is generally expressed through the principle of republicanism (or representation) as the people entrust to certain elected officials the responsibilities of day-today decision-making regarding law and policy. Because humans are flawed and disposed to increase their own power at the expense of others, Founders believed it is important to preserve the principle of limited government through a complex structure of enumerated, divided, shared powers and checks and balances.

The Founders knew that the preservation of liberty would not be easy; it is often difficult for flawed human beings to engage productively with one another to live peaceably in community. And they also knew that the American experiment in self-government had no chance to succeed without these constitutional principles, as well as personal and civic virtues.

REVIEW QUESTIONS

  • Using the definitions of “citizen” in the first paragraph of the essay, write your own definition of what it means to be a citizen.
  • Which of the Founders’ quotes in the second paragraph do you believe is most important for citizens to understand today? Be prepared to explain your answer.
  • Why do institutions like government, religious institutions, and voluntary organizations play a secondary, or supporting, role in developing strength of character, compared to the primary role of family?
  • Of the specific virtues listed in the essay, select the three or four that you think are most important, and be prepared to explain your opinion.
  • Of the specific principles described in the essay, select one or two that you believe are most important and be prepared to explain your opinion.
  • Paraphrase and evaluate the following quote from an essay that Samuel Adams wrote at the age of 27 in 1749. Was Adams correct, partially correct, or incorrect? Defend your answer. “Neither the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt. He therefore is the truest friend of the liberty of his country who tries most to promote its virtue.” Samuel Adams, Essay in The Public Advertiser, 1749

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who is the good citizen essay

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who is the good citizen essay

DAR Good Citizen

The DAR Good Citizens Award and Scholarship Contest, created in 1934, is intended to encourage and reward the qualities of good citizenship.

This award recognizes and rewards high school seniors who possess the qualities of dependability, service, leadership, and patriotism in their homes, schools, and communities. These students are selected by their teachers and peers because they demonstrate these qualities to an outstanding degree.

  • This program is only open to students whose schools are accredited and in good standing with their state board of education.
  • Only one student per year may be honored as a school's DAR Good Citizen.
  • United States citizenship is not required.
  • Additional rules and guidelines can be obtained by contacting your local DAR chapter.

Once a student is chosen as their school's DAR Good Citizen the student is invited to participate in the scholarship portion of the program. This consists of a personal statement and an essay. Student participation in the scholarship portion of the program is optional.

Scholarships are awarded to essay winers at the chapter, state, division and national levels!

Click here for an informational PDF handout . If you are an educator, please contact your local DAR chapter for additional information about DAR Good Citizens Award. If you are a parent or student, please contact your school for information.

Please note: The DAR Good Citizens Award and the Youth Citizenship Medal (formally Good Citizenship Medal) are two different programs. For information about the Youth Citizenship Medal, click here .

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DAR members selflessly dedicated themselves to the war relief effort of World War I

who is the good citizen essay

English Summary

Qualities of a Good Citizen Essay

A citizen belongs to the state. Citizenship does not indicate a mere residence in a particular state. As a member of the state, he or she has certain rights and duties. Only good citizens can make a state great. He enjoys rights and privileges and he or she is expected to contribute his or her bit in making the society as well as the country progress on healthy lines.

A citizen enjoys liberty in a democratic state. He or she is free to take up any job or profession. He or she has the right to vote. The citizens can elect a government of their choice. The citizens have a right to property, right to worship, right to seek justice, right to write or express thoughts, etc.

In the near future, they may also get the right to information and right to work. But all these rights may prove useless or even harmful if these are not exercised judiciously. After all, liberty cannot be converted into license .

One is supposed to enjoy liberty or freedom in such a way that one’s actions or utterances do not interfere with the liberty of others. While making use of one’s rights and liberty, one must be conscious of one’s duties and responsibilities.

The prime duty of a citizen is to become a good, conscious, dutiful and responsible citizen. A person must have certain qualities in order to good citizen. Only good citizens can ensure a bright future for their country.

Good citizens are intelligent and hard-working. They are bold daring. They are always prepared to lay down their lives to protect the interests and honour of their country.

A good citizen is honest in word and deed. He is always truthful and hence, never avoids paying taxes. He is selfless and does not live for himself or his family but also for others. He seeks his good in the good of all. he helps those who need help. encourages those who need encouragement and Protects those who need protection.

A good citizen is never a fanatic and narrow-minded. He or she never allows himself or herself to be dominated by emotion and petty consider tion . Religious tolerance and communal harmony are the articles of faith to an ideal citizen.

Such a person never loses temper whatever the provocation may be. good citizen always understands and uses the language of reason and follows the dictate of conscience.

A good citizen is every inch a patriot. Being loyal to the country, he or is prepared to sacrifice anything and everything for the motherland. Being broad-minded, such a citizen loves not only his own country but also other countries.

A good citizen is law-abiding and obeys the laws of the country sincerely. He or she never takes law in his or her hands. Rather people of kind extend their full co-operation to the government in maintaining law and order in the country. They are ever ready to put down crime and help the police in arresting criminals.

Ours is a democratic state. No country can ever function successfully if its citizen are not aware of their rights and responsibilities. Rights and duties always go together. They always exercise them intelligently.

Above all, a good citizen has the welfare of his country and his fellow citizens at heart. He or she does his best to further their interests. Such people render voluntary service to the city or the country in various capacities.

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Christ School students mourn 'good friends' killed in Asheville I-40 wreck after prom

who is the good citizen essay

ASHEVILLE — Hundreds of local students, as well as high schoolers in Charlotte, are mourning the loss of two teenagers killed in an Interstate 40 accident after attending a Christ School formal dance in Arden.

“Greenie Forever. We love you RJ!” reads a memorial written in chalk for Robert Fox, 19, of Wilmette, Illinois, at St. Joseph’s Chapel on the Christ School’s campus, according to the school’s website.

Fox was one of six teenagers in a 2015 Volvo passenger car that careened from the off-ramp at Exit 53B on I-40 and struck a tree sometime shortly before 11:31 p.m. April 6, according to N.C. State Highway Patrol. The vehicle was traveling too fast on the off-ramp and lost control, Sgt. Christopher Knox previously said.

Fox, a junior and lacrosse athlete, who sported No. 12 for the Christ School Greenies, died in the crash, alongside Sophie Gordon, a 16-year-old Myers Park High School Student from Charlotte.

Previous reporting: Christ School student charged in I-40 wreck that killed 2 teens, sent 2 more to ICU

“We are saddened by the loss of our student Sophie Gordon and remember her as an energetic, happy student and good friend,” Principal Robert Folk told the Citizen Times April 10. “We care very much for all students in our community and also share thoughts and prayers for the other students and families involved in the accident.”

Gordon was a dual enrolled student and member of a few campus clubs at the Charlotte school, Folk said. A flower memorial lay on the Myers Park campus in honor of her.

Folk confirmed the group of teens had attended Christ School’s prom earlier that night. Besides Fox, two other teenagers in the car attend the Asheville-area school, William Neumann, 18, of Augusta, Georgia, and Hunter Sanford, 18, of Pineville, according to the school’s website.

Christ School student charged

Neumann, the driver of the vehicle, was charged April 8 with two counts of misdemeanor death by vehicle and one count of reckless driving to endanger. His arrest warrant said he was “speeding over 100 mph without due caution.”

The investigation into the crash is still ongoing, Knox with the N.C. State Highway Patrol confirmed April 11.

Neumann’s family retained an Asheville private attorney, Doug Edwards, who told the Citizen Times, “William and his family are absolutely devastated by this tragedy.”

“Their thoughts, prayers, and hearts are with the victims and their families,” he said.

Neumann was previously held at the Buncombe County Detention Facility under a $25,000 bond but has since been released. His next court date is April 23, according to an online court database.

More: Update: 26-year-old Fletcher man killed in I-40 tractor trailer accident was US Marine

Update on students sent to ICU

Two students from Charlotte Catholic High School and rear passengers in the car, Abby Lynn Robinson, 17, and Isabella Tarantelli, 18, were in Mission Hospital’s intensive care unit following the crash.

Kurt Telford, principal of Charlotte Catholic High School, confirmed that the two juniors were still in the hospital as of April 11, but declined to give an update on their conditions citing respect for the families’ privacy.

“They’re both good students, touch a lot of lives and what I mean by that is, they are good friends to a lot of kids,” Telford told the Citizen Times April 11.

He said prayer “is very important to our lives,” and the school continues to pray for all the students involved.

More: Is Asheville area still worst in NC for pedestrian deaths in car accidents?

Hundreds of students gather to honor friends, brother, teammate.

The entire Christ School gathered the night after the accident for a prayer service at St. Joseph's Chapel on campus, around the same time about 800 students stood on Charlotte Catholic’s campus in prayer, according to Telford.

Christ School also dedicated their morning service April 8 to "RJ" Fox with flags at half staff, according to the website.

“RJ was a brother and dear friend to so many of the boys,” the website reads. “From the moment he arrived, his ever-present smile lit up spaces throughout our campus.”

Just two days before the accident, Fox helped lead the Greenies' lacrosse team to a 14-6 win over Charlotte Latin, scoring twice in the game. Last year, he was nominated for the Student and Residential Life Award for “his diligence and willingness to serve,” the website said.

The Citizen Times reached out to Christ School for comment and attempted to reach the victims' families.

Ryley Ober is the Public Safety Reporter for Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @ryleyober

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Opinion Columnists | Steven Hill: Financial literacy is good for…

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Opinion columnists | steven hill: financial literacy is good for americans, and for the country.

Author

As this year’s presidential election gathers steam, there’s going to be a lot of emphasis on getting young people to vote. Since 2020, about 16 million young people have come of voting age, so you can bet that the presidential candidates will make their pitches to motivate these young Americans. And organizations like Rock the Vote will try to engage young voters as well.

But, as Americans, we are more than voters. We are also economic agents who must work and manage our economic lives. That can be a challenge for many young people to learn, and unfortunately few political leaders encourage young Americans to learn about economics or become financially literate.

Yet so many political decisions have an economic component. Economically informed citizens are better equipped to make good decisions, both in their personal lives and when voting or participating in civic life. When citizens understand the consequences of their financial choices, they can make more informed decisions at the ballot box.

I have sometimes wished that when I was younger I had been taught greater financial literacy. In particular, I would have benefited from lessons like, “If you purchase a house as soon as possible, you won’t waste years of your money paying rent, but instead you will save up equity for later use.”

And “If you put your money in the stock market and leave it there for five to 10 years, you’re almost guaranteed to make money, given the historical record.” Or how about: “For every year you wait before you take your Social Security, you will increase your monthly benefit by about 8 percent, which amounts to 70 percent more if you wait until you’re 70 compared to if you start taking Social Security early at 62.”

The first two I did not learn until much later in life; when it comes to the third one, I’m always amazed at the number of friends and associates who are approaching retirement years and don’t know that waiting to start your Social Security payments is (often) a good thing to do, if you can afford it.

What I have learned is that being financially literate at any age gives an individual the resources they need for greater security. And the sooner you know, the better it will go. Conversely, without financial literacy you can get yourself into a heck of a lot of trouble, including debt, bad credit, or even housing foreclosure and bankruptcy.

In 2022, 270,000 homeowners, or about 8 percent of mortgage-financed home buyers, were underwater on their mortgages, meaning they owed more on their property than it’s worth. In 2009, during the nationwide economic collapse sparked by a home mortgage crisis, nearly a quarter of the nation’s homes were underwater.

The film “The Big Short” showed how banks were handing out loans like candy, including memorable cases of mortgage lenders providing “NINJA loans” (“no income, no job, no assets”) to applicants, including an exotic dancer who owned five houses and a condo with adjustable rate mortgage loans on each.

When should you take on a huge financial commitment like buying a house? What are the pros and cons of investing in other commodities, whether the stock market, gold or the latest financial fad, bitcoin? The media trumpets stories about fortunes being made and a person can feel like they are missing the gold rush. And then later the media downplays the tragedies of those who made the wrong investments and lost everything.

Consequently, many young people never learn the basic financial skills needed to prosper in life, and in some ways it is understandable. Compared to making a bitcoin fortune or becoming a TikTok influencer, learning about economic and financial basics when you are 17, 18, 20 years old seems boring.

Fortunately more people are realizing the importance of education around financial literacy, especially for young people. Increasingly it’s recognized that economic education can equip young adults with essential knowledge about how the economy functions, including concepts like supply and demand, inflation, wages and fiscal policy.

Currently 35 states require high school students to take a course in personal finance to graduate, and 28 states require students to take a course in economics. The only states that have no requirement include Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Vermont and Washington

Arizona enacted legislation to establish a State Seal of Personal Finance Proficiency to recognize public school graduates who have attained a high level of proficiency in personal finance.

Organizations like the Council for Economic Education have been advocating for public policy that instills in high school students the fourth “R” — a real world understanding of economics and personal finance. Its FinEd50 initiative advances policy changes at the state level and reports a 12-state increase since 2022 in states passing personal finance requirements. That translates into an additional 10 million high school students who will be able to learn financial literacy.

Full participation in our representative democracy requires a measure of understanding of our economic lives. I wished I had learned that many years ago. Fortunately more young people are now gaining knowledge of that very practical information. The United States is better off when more of its residents have high levels of financial literacy.

Steven Hill was policy director for the Center for Humane Technology, co-founder of FairVote and political reform director at New America. He wrote this column for The Fulcrum.

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All eyes were on Yellen during China trip. People noticed she's good with chopsticks

Emily Feng at NPR headquarters in Washington, D.C., March 19, 2019. (photo by Allison Shelley)

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen wrapped up a trip to China to mend bilateral ties, but Chinese citizens cared far more about what she ate — and how.

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen wrapped up a trip to China this week. She had important issues to talk about, like working with China's leaders to avert a global financial crisis and warning them not to supply Russia's defense. But what a lot of people in China wanted to talk about was what Yellen had to eat. NPR's Emily Feng has more.

EMILY FENG, BYLINE: Among Chinese gourmands, the consensus is Yellen knows what's up with Chinese food. This week, she hit up an American-style brewery.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: So you've got the IPA. I've got the lager. And I can taste the American hops.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

FENG: A Cantonese restaurant in the Lao Chuan Ban canting in Beijing. The restaurant is a staple for anyone who loves the always-spicy-sometimes-sweet sophistication of Sichuan cuisine - and a favorite of this correspondent as well.

LI QIANG: (Speaking Chinese).

FENG: That's Chuan Ban chef Li Qiang talking to Chinese state media. And Chef Li says approvingly that Yellen ordered dishes like mapo tofu and twice-cooked pork that are full of authentic Sichuan flavor.

QIANG: (Speaking Chinese).

FENG: Chef Li says Yellen told him the food was very delicious and she'd be back again. This obsession with where Yellen eats on her China trips and how much it costs reflects just how much people in China love their food. It's also a sign of how closely U.S. and Chinese officials are being scrutinized in trying to balance a teetering relationship.

The verdict on Yellen is she's good with chopsticks and she's got a good appetite. During a trip last year to China, she caused a stir on both sides of the Pacific after frequenting a Yunnan cuisine place.

JANET YELLEN: There was a delicious mushroom dish. I was not aware that these mushrooms had hallucinogenic properties. I learned that later.

FENG: Mildly hallucinogenic if they're not cooked properly. But luckily, they were very well cooked. The anecdote does track with Yellen's reputation for being curious but prepared. Most of the time, Yellen has much weightier topics at hand, like trying to get China to open up its market more and not flood the world with its electric vehicles. But of course, it's way more fun to talk about what she eats.

Emily Feng, NPR News, Taipei, Taiwan.

(SOUNDBITE OF RODRIGO Y GABRIELA'S "TAMACUN")

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NPR in Turmoil After It Is Accused of Liberal Bias

An essay from an editor at the broadcaster has generated a firestorm of criticism about the network on social media, especially among conservatives.

Uri Berliner, wearing a dark zipped sweater over a white T-shirt, sits in a darkened room, a big plant and a yellow sofa behind him.

By Benjamin Mullin and Katie Robertson

NPR is facing both internal tumult and a fusillade of attacks by prominent conservatives this week after a senior editor publicly claimed the broadcaster had allowed liberal bias to affect its coverage, risking its trust with audiences.

Uri Berliner, a senior business editor who has worked at NPR for 25 years, wrote in an essay published Tuesday by The Free Press, a popular Substack publication, that “people at every level of NPR have comfortably coalesced around the progressive worldview.”

Mr. Berliner, a Peabody Award-winning journalist, castigated NPR for what he said was a litany of journalistic missteps around coverage of several major news events, including the origins of Covid-19 and the war in Gaza. He also said the internal culture at NPR had placed race and identity as “paramount in nearly every aspect of the workplace.”

Mr. Berliner’s essay has ignited a firestorm of criticism of NPR on social media, especially among conservatives who have long accused the network of political bias in its reporting. Former President Donald J. Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, to argue that NPR’s government funding should be rescinded, an argument he has made in the past.

NPR has forcefully pushed back on Mr. Berliner’s accusations and the criticism.

“We’re proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories,” Edith Chapin, the organization’s editor in chief, said in an email to staff on Tuesday. “We believe that inclusion — among our staff, with our sourcing, and in our overall coverage — is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world.” Some other NPR journalists also criticized the essay publicly, including Eric Deggans, its TV critic, who faulted Mr. Berliner for not giving NPR an opportunity to comment on the piece.

In an interview on Thursday, Mr. Berliner expressed no regrets about publishing the essay, saying he loved NPR and hoped to make it better by airing criticisms that have gone unheeded by leaders for years. He called NPR a “national trust” that people rely on for fair reporting and superb storytelling.

“I decided to go out and publish it in hopes that something would change, and that we get a broader conversation going about how the news is covered,” Mr. Berliner said.

He said he had not been disciplined by managers, though he said he had received a note from his supervisor reminding him that NPR requires employees to clear speaking appearances and media requests with standards and media relations. He said he didn’t run his remarks to The New York Times by network spokespeople.

When the hosts of NPR’s biggest shows, including “Morning Edition” and “All Things Considered,” convened on Wednesday afternoon for a long-scheduled meet-and-greet with the network’s new chief executive, Katherine Maher , conversation soon turned to Mr. Berliner’s essay, according to two people with knowledge of the meeting. During the lunch, Ms. Chapin told the hosts that she didn’t want Mr. Berliner to become a “martyr,” the people said.

Mr. Berliner’s essay also sent critical Slack messages whizzing through some of the same employee affinity groups focused on racial and sexual identity that he cited in his essay. In one group, several staff members disputed Mr. Berliner’s points about a lack of ideological diversity and said efforts to recruit more people of color would make NPR’s journalism better.

On Wednesday, staff members from “Morning Edition” convened to discuss the fallout from Mr. Berliner’s essay. During the meeting, an NPR producer took issue with Mr. Berliner’s argument for why NPR’s listenership has fallen off, describing a variety of factors that have contributed to the change.

Mr. Berliner’s remarks prompted vehement pushback from several news executives. Tony Cavin, NPR’s managing editor of standards and practices, said in an interview that he rejected all of Mr. Berliner’s claims of unfairness, adding that his remarks would probably make it harder for NPR journalists to do their jobs.

“The next time one of our people calls up a Republican congressman or something and tries to get an answer from them, they may well say, ‘Oh, I read these stories, you guys aren’t fair, so I’m not going to talk to you,’” Mr. Cavin said.

Some journalists have defended Mr. Berliner’s essay. Jeffrey A. Dvorkin, NPR’s former ombudsman, said Mr. Berliner was “not wrong” on social media. Chuck Holmes, a former managing editor at NPR, called Mr. Berliner’s essay “brave” on Facebook.

Mr. Berliner’s criticism was the latest salvo within NPR, which is no stranger to internal division. In October, Mr. Berliner took part in a lengthy debate over whether NPR should defer to language proposed by the Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association while covering the conflict in Gaza.

“We don’t need to rely on an advocacy group’s guidance,” Mr. Berliner wrote, according to a copy of the email exchange viewed by The Times. “Our job is to seek out the facts and report them.” The debate didn’t change NPR’s language guidance, which is made by editors who weren’t part of the discussion. And in a statement on Thursday, the Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association said it is a professional association for journalists, not a political advocacy group.

Mr. Berliner’s public criticism has highlighted broader concerns within NPR about the public broadcaster’s mission amid continued financial struggles. Last year, NPR cut 10 percent of its staff and canceled four podcasts, including the popular “Invisibilia,” as it tried to make up for a $30 million budget shortfall. Listeners have drifted away from traditional radio to podcasts, and the advertising market has been unsteady.

In his essay, Mr. Berliner laid some of the blame at the feet of NPR’s former chief executive, John Lansing, who said he was retiring at the end of last year after four years in the role. He was replaced by Ms. Maher, who started on March 25.

During a meeting with employees in her first week, Ms. Maher was asked what she thought about decisions to give a platform to political figures like Ronna McDaniel, the former Republican Party chair whose position as a political analyst at NBC News became untenable after an on-air revolt from hosts who criticized her efforts to undermine the 2020 election.

“I think that this conversation has been one that does not have an easy answer,” Ms. Maher responded.

Benjamin Mullin reports on the major companies behind news and entertainment. Contact Ben securely on Signal at +1 530-961-3223 or email at [email protected] . More about Benjamin Mullin

Katie Robertson covers the media industry for The Times. Email:  [email protected]   More about Katie Robertson

Donald Trump could face prison time if he is convicted in upcoming NY hush money trial

who is the good citizen essay

If former President Donald Trump is convicted on all counts in his New York criminal hush money trial that begins April 15, he could theoretically face more than a decade in prison.

But most legal experts who spoke to USA TODAY said such a dramatic outcome is unlikely. Instead, he would likely be sentenced to something between probation and four years in prison. And he would probably still be out, free to campaign for president as the presumptive or actual 2024 Republican nominee, while his all-but-certain appeal was pending.

Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Each count carries a maximum sentence of four years.

While Trump could in principle be sentenced to serve multiple counts consecutively, several experts said that is unlikely because he has no felony criminal record and the charges don't involve allegations of physical violence.

On the other hand, Trump has tested boundaries and feuded with the judge who may determine his fate.

Prep for the polls: See who is running for president and compare where they stand on key issues in our Voter Guide

Trump has antagonized Judge Juan Merchan

Trump's sentence would be decided by Judge Juan Merchan, who has grown exasperated by the former president's pretrial behavior. Merchan expanded a gag order this month after Trump attacked the judge's daughter on social media over her marketing work with Democratic candidates, including posting a photo of her. Merchan said Trump has a history of attacking the family members of judges and lawyers in his legal cases.

"The average observer, must now, after hearing Defendant's recent attacks, draw the conclusion that if they become involved in these proceedings, even tangentially, they should worry not only for themselves,  but for their loved ones as well ," Merchan wrote in his gag order decision .

John Moscow, a New York lawyer who spent 30 years in the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, told USA TODAY that type of behavior could worsen any sentence Trump faces.

"If I were representing somebody in (Trump's) position, I would suggest to him that the judge is the one who imposes sentence and he ought to be careful," Moscow said.

If Merchan did consider a hefty sentence, it wouldn't be the first time he has taken a harsh view about behavior in Trump's orbit.

In 2023, Merchan was forced to sentence former Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg to only five months in jail because Merchan had previously accepted a plea bargain agreement between Weisselberg and prosecutors specifying that jail term. Weisselberg pleaded guilty to tax and record falsification charges and agreed to testify against the Trump Organization at trial in order to get that sentence.

The judge said, however, that he "would be imposing a sentence much greater than that" had he not accepted the plea bargain before hearing all the evidence at the trial. Without the plea deal, Weisselberg could have faced many years in prison.

What is Trump charged with?

Trump has pleaded not guilty to all counts in the case, which focuses on whether he falsified business records to cover up reimbursements to his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, for a $130,000 hush money payment to Daniels. Daniels has said she had a sexual encounter with Trump soon after Melania Trump gave birth to their son, Barron Trump. Trump denies the claim.

In order to secure felony convictions, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office must convince a 12-person jury that Trump falsified the records in order to commit or conceal another crime. In this case, Bragg argues Trump was trying to conceal a federal campaign finance law violation by falsely recording his reimbursements to Cohen as payments for legal services. The federal violation was a limit-exceeding contribution to Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, as the payment was allegedly designed to keep Daniels' story from hurting the then-Republican nominee's election prospects. Bragg also alleges Trump was trying to conceal a plan to violate New York tax and election laws.

Nothing in the Constitution prevents Trump from becoming president even if he is convicted or sentenced to prison. If he won the election, however, courts may delay any prison time until after his term in office expires .

What is the maximum possible sentence?

The 34 felony counts Trump faces are classified as "Class E felonies" under New York law – the lowest level felony in the state. The maximum penalty on each count is four years of prison, and a judge would have discretion over whether to order Trump to serve sentences on each count at the same time or one after the other. However, New York caps such sentencing for Class E felonies at 20 years .

In addition, New York judges often impose sentencing ranges, where an incarcerated person becomes eligible for parole at the low end of the range. For Class E felonies, the lowest end of a range would be one-and-a-third years per count, while the highest would be four years. Good behavior in jail or prison can speed things up even more.

A sentence limited to probation?

Merchan would also have discretion to order a fixed sentence of less than those ranges, including probation.

That's what Mitchell Epner, a New York lawyer with decades of criminal law experience, expects would happen even if Trump were convicted on all counts. Epner noted the felony charges aren't violent and don't involve drugs.

"With a defendant who has no prior criminal record, my absolute expectation would be a sentence of probation," Epner told USA TODAY.

Epner wasn't alone in thinking that could be the sentencing outcome.

"This is a case that does not involve any physical violence, and it doesn't – there's not sort of a 'named victim,' so to speak – and so the court is going to take that into consideration," Anna Cominsky, who directs the Criminal Defense Clinic at New York Law School, told USA TODAY.

"In addition, I think it is unlikely that he would be sent to prison given who he is, given both the fact that he has no criminal record, and there is no getting around the fact that he is a former president of the United States," Cominsky said.

Incarceration a real possibility

Norman Eisen, a Brookings Institution senior fellow who served as special counsel to the House Judiciary Committee during Trump's first impeachment, thought a sentence that includes some incarceration is likely.

Eisen co-authored a report looking at sentencing for other defendants with no criminal history who were convicted of falsifying business records in New York. There, he noted one construction executive was sentenced in 2015 to spend two days each week in jail for a year for falsifying records to conceal payments in a bribery scheme. In 2013, two corporate executives were ordered to spend four to six months in jail for falsifying records to misclassify their salaries as expenses under their employer's larger bribery and fraud scheme.

"I think he's likely to face a sentence of incarceration if he's convicted," Eisen told USA TODAY.

Cominsky said the evidence Merchan hears at trial could also influence his thinking when it comes to sentencing.

"Often you'll hear judges refer to testimony at trial, evidence that was presented at trial, and say, 'This is why I'm imposing this sentence, because I heard from this particular witness or I saw this particular piece of evidence,'" Cominsky said.

Moscow pushed back against the assumption that Trump's sentences on each count would run simultaneously, instead of being stacked on top of each other. Just as a judge may take into account that a defendant has won a Nobel Peace Prize or lifted orphans from poverty, the judge may look at significant evidence of bad acts, Moscow said.

"When you start attacking the judge's daughter, and making her out to be a target, you have just breached the normal rules," Moscow said.

Trump has also posted a photo of himself wielding a bat, with his eyes directed toward an adjacent photo of Bragg, among other attacks on the district attorney. Bragg's office has received thousands of harassing emails, calls, and texts – including death threats – after Trump's social media attacks, it said in a court filing .

Diana Florence, a New York lawyer who spent decades in the Manhattan District Attorney's office, said Merchan's sentence would need to have some relation to what other white-collar defendants in similar cases have received, and she would be surprised if someone had ever gotten a sentencing range for falsifying business records with a minimum of 10 years or more.

Such a long sentence "would be very, very, very, very unusual, and if Judge Merchan wanted to make a point and do that, I highly doubt the appellate division would allow that to stand," she said. "It's just too much time for the conduct."

However, Florence added that a reasonable sentencing range could include a minimum period of more than a year incarcerated.

Sentencing someone with Secret Service protection?

Contemplating any jail or prison sentence would take Merchan into unchartered territory: Trump is the first former president ever criminally charged, and the Secret Service provides him with around-the-clock security.

But avoiding a sentence of incarceration on that basis risks undermining the idea of equal treatment under the law, Moscow suggested.

"If I were the judge − and I don't know what a judge would do in this case − I would reject out of hand the concept that because he was once president, and because as a matter of policy the Secret Service guards former presidents, that therefore he can't go to jail," Moscow said.

The question would then become how to reconcile equal treatment with ensuring a former president's security, according to Moscow. The judge could get creative, for example by ordering the former president to stay in a hotel wing or at a military base, where he is isolated just like any other prisoner but still has Secret Service protection.

"You can structure things to achieve the proper result without conceding that the defendant has the upper hand," Moscow said.

Chances of immediate prison? 'Less than 1%'

Many convicted defendants are "remanded" pending sentencing, a process in which they are taken into custody while they await their sentence, Florence said.

But Florence didn't expect Merchan to give that order when it comes to Trump, and even if Merchan did, Trump would likely be able to get bail set by an appeals court in the thousands of dollars to stay free during his appeal. That's all the more likely if Trump receives a low sentence, since the appeal could take longer than his actual sentence, she said.

"The chances of him going to prison immediately, even if he's convicted in whatever, six weeks from now or whenever, are I would say less than 1% because he would immediately be released on bail pending appeal," according to Florence.

Eisen agreed Trump probably wouldn't be incarcerated by Election Day, even if he's convicted on all counts.

"I think he's extremely unlikely to be forced to serve that sentence pending appeal," Eisen said.

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    A good citizen is honest in word and deed. He is always truthful and hence, never avoids paying taxes. He is selfless and does not live for himself or his family but also for others. He seeks his good in the good of all. he helps those who need help. encourages those who need encouragement and Protects those who need protection.

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    If former President Donald Trump is convicted on all counts in his New York criminal hush money trial that begins April 15, he could theoretically face more than a decade in prison.. But most ...