Earlier this month, we collectively celebrated Constitution Day, commemorating the signing of the U.S. Constitution in Philadelphia on September 17, 1787. As we look ahead to the nation’s semiquincentennial in July, there are both signs of hope—civic knowledge is on the rise—and concern—distrust of age-old American institutions threatens to compromise the nation’s constitutional democracy.
The Annenberg Public Policy Center’s annual survey of Americans’ constitutional knowledge found a promising increase in those able to identify the three branches of government (70%, up from 64% last year) and freedom of speech as protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (79% versus 74% in 2024). Still concerning are the 13% of Americans who can’t identify any of the three branches of government. What’s more, none of the remaining freedoms of the First Amendment were identified by more than half of those surveyed, with freedom of religion topping out at 48%.
Far from being relegated to the pages of history, the U.S. Constitution’s relevancy today is being demonstrated as the three branches work through their balance of powers and the extent of executive power is litigated in the courts. Moreover, the limits of free speech are front and center in this period of appalling political violence.
Perhaps most concerning among the Annenberg findings is the dramatic decline in public trust for the U.S. Supreme Court. Like so many aspects of contemporary American life, views of the Court are shaped by political affiliation, yet the problem of institutional distrust is much broader than the Court and spans the political spectrum.
This toxic mix of political polarization and lack of institutional trust threatens the strength and sustenance of our constitutional democracy, and civic education remains the most promising pathway to bridge divides and restore trust. This begins by affirming and practicing the pluralism that makes America exceptional, “with malice toward none.” In K–12 classrooms and on college campuses, we must model the norms of civil discourse and debate that are essential to the survival of this grand experiment in self-governance.
Institutional trust is admittedly earned, but it is also built through a better understanding of our federalist system and the opportunities for us to engage with government in Washington, D.C., state capitals, and our communities. Moreover, the best way to push institutions to live up to the lofty ideals set forth in the Declaration of Independence 250 years ago is through civic engagement within constitutional boundaries. As the nation prepares to celebrate its 250th, our institutions are certainly in need of a check-up. Let us work within them and across parties to “form a more perfect union” as envisioned in the U.S. Constitution.