These were my initial reflections in the wake of George Floyd’s tragic murder and the aftermath of protests and shock on social media. In remembrance and honor of George Floyd. Working to stay engaged in the fight for racial justice, falling short, trying again… ~ Before you click Ask yourself Are you sharing information Or gaining reputation? ~ Before you share Question Do you really want to educate Or just replicate? ~ Is the hashtag trending Or merely trendy? Do your words matter To Black Lives Matter? ~ A chaotic swirl of raw emotion In your big white bubble Do you have a notion? ~ When the streets clear Will…

I am going to say it. Racism is playing out in front of our eyes in my school district. And most people are missing it. Last week, our district and teachers’ union reached an agreement to bring Kindergarteners and first graders back to school in-person through a hybrid model. The decision was reached after many plot turns including high pressure tactics from the Superintendent and a lawsuit filed by the union. Representatives of the union stated that the school board has been laser-focused for months on discussing one, and only one, issue: the MOU (Memorandum of Understanding – basically a contract for working conditions) for K-3. In other words, in…

I never stopped engaging in it, exactly. But I lost steam and faith.  In my first teaching job, I had joined the equity committee, organized a multicultural event, helped teach ELL (English) classes to parents at night, and shocked my co-workers when I stood up one day to a grouchy and domineering veteran teacher making borderline racist comments in the staff lounge. He used to throw around phrases like “The clientele at our school has changed.” If you are not familiar with coded language in the education context, this usually means: “Our students used to be White and well-behaved. Now they are browner, poorer and have behavior problems.”  More recently…

With the flood of anti-racism resources circulating the internet following the murder of George Floyd, it feels terribly ridiculous to add more content on this subject. It is painfully obvious that much of the progressive White community (myself included), has jumped on the BLM bandwagon when we should have been on the ride the entire time. Regardless, I do see it as a positive that people are trying to take action. How long we stay in the fight, now, is the real question. Because those of us who are White have the privilege to deboard this bandwagon at any moment that we start to feel tired, inconvenienced, emotionally overwhelmed or…