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Fighting to Understand

Let's see. ... The Constitution still works. Capitalism still works. Americans even agree on many basic human values. Yet something is amiss. It is as if we have forgotten how to be We The People. We will explain.

The organizations who are members of Citizenconnect.us were founded by people from all walks of life, political parties, races, identities, and religions. What they have in common is a conviction that America is stronger if we, the people, work together. It isn’t about agreeing on everything; it’s about finding what we can agree on and making it happen. This means that all the organizations on this site also share a set of core principles:


Civility

We treat one another with dignity and respect.

Fairness

We value diverse perspectives and work to achieve balanced outcomes.

Reason

We use fact-based deliberation to find common ground and practical solutions.

Citizen Connect has over 500 organizations focused on everything from election reform to civic education to restoring civil dialogue. They’re run by people who span the political spectrum – Republicans, Democrats and Independents. Check out our featured organizations below – or use our search tools to find your perfect match. Explore, learn more, then get connected!


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"That’s where I became 100% Israeli": Zionism through the eyes of a Holocaust survivor

Irene Shashar, Holocaust Survivor

"That’s where I became 100% Israeli": Zionism through the eyes of a Holocaust survivor

Irene Shashar walked hand in hand with her mother through the streets of the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw, Poland, surrounded by three‑meter‑high walls with electric wires, lifeless bodies, and German soldiers — their mission was to look for food to bring back and share with her father.

“They’re coming! They’re coming!” a crowd shouted in Polish when they saw Irene (then named Ruth) and her mother returning from their errand. Her mother pulled her quickly by the arm, and they ran up the stairs. When they reached the top, they saw that the kitchen floor was no longer white — it was covered with her father’s blood after a German soldier shot him in the neck.

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The Founders Built Safeguards. Our Politics Rendered Them Useless
selective focus photo of U.S.A. flag
Photo by Andrew Ruiz on Unsplash

The Founders Built Safeguards. Our Politics Rendered Them Useless

The men who gathered in Philadelphia in 1787 were students of history, and it taught them a singular lesson: power corrupts, and unchecked power can destroy a republic.

They designed our experiment with overlapping safeguards to ensure that no single faction, branch, or man could hold the nation hostage. What remained unresolved was agency: who, exactly, can determine when to trigger those safeguards? History has since exposed this as the system's deepest vulnerability.

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As Middle East Wars Rage, Georgetown Gaza Lecture Series Highlights Conversations on Campuses

Georgetown University’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, located within the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service is a co-host of the second annual Gaza Lecture Series.

Credit: Jacques Abou-Rizk/MNS

As Middle East Wars Rage, Georgetown Gaza Lecture Series Highlights Conversations on Campuses

WASHINGTON – One by one, students inside the intimate lounge of Georgetown University’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies on Wednesday called their family and friends across the Middle East.

The dozen students and faculty members watched TV screens tuned to Al Jazeera’s Arabic broadcast. The footage showed images of Israel’s strikes on Lebanon earlier that day.

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House Bill Pushes Bipartisan Effort to Tackle Federal Benefits Fraud, Refocusing from Immigration

Expert witnesses testify on the issues facing federal benefits programs run by states at a House Government Operations hearing on Wednesday, April 15, 2026.

(Photo by Naisha Roy | Medill News Service)

House Bill Pushes Bipartisan Effort to Tackle Federal Benefits Fraud, Refocusing from Immigration

WASHINGTON — Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas, introduced a bill Wednesday morning that would create a permanent U.S. Treasury Inspector General position for fraud accountability as part of a broader effort to crack down on the misuse of federal benefits.

The bill would offer an alternative, bipartisan way to prevent federal benefits fraud, after several months of politically charged congressional hearings.

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