Yes Garrett, yes. I esp love -- Let's care about our kids enough to not lie to them. And I even more love your call to not debate, but pivot to what is more important -- demanding truth, coming together, and working as fervently towards that as they are. It's so easy to get caught in the tangle of responding to the wrong set of challenges. Love the guidance from Brown and Oluo on that tip. Also, perfect song. Also also, I just picked up Lies My Teacher Told Me again, which was re-released (is that what you say for books?) in 2019 with a preference about "alternate facts". Just the reckoning our country, our people need with history is flaming obvs in the school board debates. Thanks for another great perspective and the inspiration to build something better together.
Haha well you prob know most of it in broad strokes, those are the hardest books to pick up I'd say. But is a good read bc he really did survey a bunch of textbooks and it's fun/awful to see how wrong they get things, and jaw dropping to hear how much more interesting the real story is. The updated edition has some great anecdotes about reader responses, incl students who heckle their teachers with the info Loewen imparts!
You did it again! I have been pondering all of this so much and trying to figure out how to address it at large and within my own community, but really just wishing for someone like you to articulate all of this exactly as you have. Thank you. These ideas and reminders are exactly what I, at least, needed.
I did write letters to the editor all over the state’s newspapers pointing out that I’ve been a copy editor for every textbook publisher you could think of for 20 years and in hundreds of textbooks have never come across anything that could be remotely described as CRT. Some books used to teach reading are more diverse than they were when I was a kid, but we all benefit from that. (Am happy to privately share the one client that I think does a great job of this in addition to having better structured and more effective reading/writing curriculum than anyone else I’ve worked for.)
I like Oumo’s point, but it does leave out the larger issue of states where CRT has been banned wholesale. That’s a different battle from pushing for better curriculum at the school district level.
Totally agree with your point about how this organizing strategy doesn't solve for the wave of state bans. I'm still curious if there's creative opportunities for parents to show support for teachers/schools were they to ignore/defy the bans.
Also... that letter you sent to the legislature sounds like a powerhouse mic drop. And yes, I'd love to find out some time which publisher you've worked with is doing a good job.
Bozeman school district, post the MT Attorney General's dictat banning CRT, just stated flat out that they don't have any CRT in their curricula and will keep going on as they are. I thought that was actually a great response.
This is fantastic! We all remember those moments of truth telling, don’t we? Like when I first learned about why this Black community near me lived by a trash dump, basically redlining. I felt so sad & so sick. Like why had no one ever told me this?? But then so moved to do something.
I love how your post so graciously hits on the whole. 🥰
"Somewhere, centuries ago, before many of our ancestors made the devil’s bargain to become white, we were all human.
Today, in spite of our worst efforts, we still are."
Yowzers. Thanks Bucks.
Love you, Wheeler.
💯 agree
Yes Garrett, yes. I esp love -- Let's care about our kids enough to not lie to them. And I even more love your call to not debate, but pivot to what is more important -- demanding truth, coming together, and working as fervently towards that as they are. It's so easy to get caught in the tangle of responding to the wrong set of challenges. Love the guidance from Brown and Oluo on that tip. Also, perfect song. Also also, I just picked up Lies My Teacher Told Me again, which was re-released (is that what you say for books?) in 2019 with a preference about "alternate facts". Just the reckoning our country, our people need with history is flaming obvs in the school board debates. Thanks for another great perspective and the inspiration to build something better together.
I somehow have still not read Lies My Teachers Told Me... I know, I know.. no good reason for it!
Haha well you prob know most of it in broad strokes, those are the hardest books to pick up I'd say. But is a good read bc he really did survey a bunch of textbooks and it's fun/awful to see how wrong they get things, and jaw dropping to hear how much more interesting the real story is. The updated edition has some great anecdotes about reader responses, incl students who heckle their teachers with the info Loewen imparts!
You did it again! I have been pondering all of this so much and trying to figure out how to address it at large and within my own community, but really just wishing for someone like you to articulate all of this exactly as you have. Thank you. These ideas and reminders are exactly what I, at least, needed.
I did write letters to the editor all over the state’s newspapers pointing out that I’ve been a copy editor for every textbook publisher you could think of for 20 years and in hundreds of textbooks have never come across anything that could be remotely described as CRT. Some books used to teach reading are more diverse than they were when I was a kid, but we all benefit from that. (Am happy to privately share the one client that I think does a great job of this in addition to having better structured and more effective reading/writing curriculum than anyone else I’ve worked for.)
I like Oumo’s point, but it does leave out the larger issue of states where CRT has been banned wholesale. That’s a different battle from pushing for better curriculum at the school district level.
Totally agree with your point about how this organizing strategy doesn't solve for the wave of state bans. I'm still curious if there's creative opportunities for parents to show support for teachers/schools were they to ignore/defy the bans.
Also... that letter you sent to the legislature sounds like a powerhouse mic drop. And yes, I'd love to find out some time which publisher you've worked with is doing a good job.
Bozeman school district, post the MT Attorney General's dictat banning CRT, just stated flat out that they don't have any CRT in their curricula and will keep going on as they are. I thought that was actually a great response.
This is fantastic! We all remember those moments of truth telling, don’t we? Like when I first learned about why this Black community near me lived by a trash dump, basically redlining. I felt so sad & so sick. Like why had no one ever told me this?? But then so moved to do something.
I love how your post so graciously hits on the whole. 🥰
Love that the truth-learning was a catalyst for action.