On Oct.1, the United States Government announced a government shutdown, halting all non-essential government procedures. As more students become aware of the events in the government through sources such as social media, history teachers Abbigayle Marion and Danielle Panzarella work to teach students what the government shutdown truly looks like.
“I don’t love it when our government isn’t functioning the way it’s supposed to,” Ms. Panzarella said. “But it’s also part of the design of our government that we have to work together, that no one entity gets its way completely. So in that way, it makes sense.”
Government shutdowns occur when lawmakers fail to pass a full-year spending bill or a continuing resolution. Officials must then work to reach an agreement on how to budget the next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1.
“I hope that people understand there is not one easy answer for why this happened or how to fix it,” Ms. Panzarella said. “It’s a very complicated process.”
Government shutdowns have taken place 14 times since 1980. People who do not understand the depth of a government shutdown often blame the political party in office at the time. Ms. Panzarelle said this causes political tensions to grow within the country.
“[Understanding government shutdowns] can be hard depending on your political ideology,” Ms. Panzarella said. “You’re going to have different sources that you like. I would say make sure you’re looking at a lot of sources.”
When searching for information about government shutdowns, people often find biased information and sources. This influences the pressure that opposing parties impose on the government, causing even more problems when attempting to find a compromise for the new fiscal year.
“If you know that you typically lean toward a more conservative news source or a more liberal news source, try to seek out the other side,” Ms. Panzarella said. “I wish people would understand how complex it is.”
To raise awareness of biased news and help students understand how to find true information about government shutdowns, Ms. Marion educates students on how to find the truth in the news.
“I strive to help students form boundaries [with social media], especially as a history teacher,” Ms. Marion said. “We talk about bias and propaganda, looking at how to filter through good resources versus bad resources.”
Government shutdowns cause the government to furlough employees or place them in a temporary state of non-duty. The lapse in pay sometimes forces employees to resign from their government positions.
“The conversation we usually have toward government shutdowns is that teachers are state funded,” Ms. Marion said. “Education is state-funded, not federally funded.”
Major programs such as Social Security and Medicare remain unaffected because Congress has approved these programs to spend without an expiration date. Congress refers to this as mandatory spending, which makes up 60% of government spending. The government also continues to make interest payments on national debt, which makes up 13% of spending.
“I know that [the government shutdown is] a major concern as far as travel, military, and getting people through customs and security,” Ms. Marion said. “So I know that affects more than people realize, including welfare and retirement, so that’s always concerning.”
Government shutdowns impact more than government employees. Airport staff do not receive the same amount of funding during a government shutdown, causing the understaffing of airports. This led to a lack of air traffic controllers, causing major airports in places such as Las Vegas and California to cancel and delay flights. As the government shutdown continues, new problems with government-funded programs will occur.
“Keep your eye on the news and pay attention to how we are working toward a compromise that will get us out of this,” Ms. Panzarella said. “At the end of the day, there are only a couple of ways that this is going to end. I’m hoping that compromise is what happens because that’s the way our government’s designed.”
