Saturday, June 14, 2008

The Government of Boys Town

Visiting Boys Town and learning about how the boys govern themselves was an example of a true democratic system. I knew that the boys elected a leader from amongst their group to serve as President. During our visit, we sat inside their assembly hall to get a feel for how they run their meetings, headed by their elected President. Meetings are held three times a week in this hall – Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. The building was set up like a forum with inclined benches encircling the room and a higher table for the President and officials on one side. No adults are allowed to speak during the meetings, though a few adults who work there are present. Their system also works well because their elected leader only holds his position for two month terms. This way, everyone has the chance to be the President if they want to, and those that are successful in their position can be re-elected many times, as long as their terms are not in succession. I was very impressed that these young boys, ages nine to eighteen, conduct meetings and govern themselves so successfully.

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