The only time I can imagine the word "citizen" used with any power is from some movie. This image is buried deep in my mind. Caesar is standing on a balcony in front of tens of thousands of Romans. "Citizens of Rome," he would say and the masses would roar with cheers. Where this memory is conjured from I have no idea. But I see it clear as day.
Today I hear "citizen" and my eyes roll. I feel like I'm in social studies class being taught other cliche's such as duty and responsibility. "Community" gives me the same feeling but with a claustrophobia of provincialism surrounded by white picket fences.
“Denizen of our district.” That doesn’t seem to work either. Though denizen seems more appropriate than citizen when referring to a school. After all, one doesn’t need to hold citizenship to attend public schools. (I mean that in a good way)
Why worry about the connotations when the denotative functions of these words suffice? Well, because there is such competition to get peoples attention. I’m afraid “Citizen Journalism” and "Local Education News" won’t grab people’s imagination.
Does anyone have a better phrasing? Right now “Our Schools” is a name I’m tinkering with. Post a comment and write what you think.
