John Thompson: A Report from Tulsa after Trump’s Rally Fiasco | Diane Ravitch's blog

John Thompson: A Report from Tulsa after Trump’s Rally Fiasco | Diane Ravitch's blog

John Thompson: A Report from Tulsa after Trump’s Rally Fiasco

John Thompson is a retired teacher and historian in Oklahoma.

He writes:

I previously posted on the Profiles in Courage of Tulsans who resisted President Donald Trump’s hideous rally that was appropriately characterized as “Come for the Racism, Stay for the Plague.” That was easy; it was primarily the medical profession that stood firm for the public’s health. The main narrative was the way that Republicans, like Mayor G.T. Bynum, who I previously respected, put Trumpism over principle.

In the wake of Trump’s fiasco, as well as the way that so many Americans did what so many elected officials did not dare, I wonder if historians will see the last week’s resistance across the nation as a turning point. So, this week’s post searches the rally and its opposition for examples of 21st century politics that can be built on.

Mary Jo Laupp, a teacher now known internationally as the TikTok grandma,”” was moved by black TikTok users’ frustration about Trump hosting a rally on Juneteenth. Laupp produced a video saying, “I recommend all of those of us that want to see this 19,000-seat auditorium barely filled or completely empty go reserve tickets now, and leave him standing there alone on the stage.” It went viral and the grassroots registration social media CONTINUE READING: John Thompson: A Report from Tulsa after Trump’s Rally Fiasco | Diane Ravitch's blog

Jeff Bryant on America’s Democrats Podcast: What it Will Take to Save Public Education from a Looming Catastrophe + DON’T OPEN A NEW CHARTER SCHOOL IN A PANDEMIC | Ed Politics

Jeff Bryant on America’s Democrats Podcast: What it Will Take to Save Public Education from a Looming Catastrophe | Ed Politics

JEFF BRYANT ON AMERICA’S DEMOCRATS PODCAST: WHAT IT WILL TAKE TO SAVE PUBLIC EDUCATION FROM A LOOMING CATASTROPHE

#485 : The post pandemic agenda.

The Coronavirus pandemic is turning into a financial crisis for our nation’s schools. Jeff Bryant explains what it will take to save public education from a looming catastrophe.

Jeff Bryant on America’s Democrats Podcast: What it Will Take to Save Public Education from a Looming Catastrophe | Ed Politics

Education 101: Don’t Open a New Charter School in the Middle of a Pandemic | Ed Politics - https://edpolitics.org/?p=267

As borrower claims languish, House fails to override Trump's student loan forgiveness veto | Salon.com

As borrower claims languish, House fails to override Trump's student loan forgiveness veto | Salon.com

As borrower claims languish, House fails to override Trump's student loan forgiveness veto
The move comes as whistleblower allegations allege officials killed a loan forgiveness site for being too helpful

The House of Representatives failed Friday to override President Donald Trump's veto of a bipartisan bill which would have restored Obama-era regulations to the student loan borrower defense program.

Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos sought for years to dismantle the program, which offered financial relief to students deceived or defrauded by predatory institutions. A draconian rule she enacted last September rejected 95% of the first 17,000 applicants reviewed by the department.

The House and Senate issued a rare bipartisan rebuke of that rule. However, Congress could not muster enough votes to override Trump, who sided with DeVos against the majority of the legislative branch.

Friday's vote came as the Department of Education finds itself mired in settling a class-action lawsuit with a group of defrauded borrowers who successfully argued that the Trump administration illegally stonewalled nearly 200,000 pending applications for debt relief, some languishing for years.

DeVos was threatened with jail time last fall after continuing to collect student loan debts from individuals whose loans to a scandal-ridden and bankrupt for-profit college were legally voided. CONTINUE READING: As borrower claims languish, House fails to override Trump's student loan forgiveness veto | Salon.com

Gianna Was Right, Her Daddy Changed the World - Philly's 7th Ward

Gianna Was Right, Her Daddy Changed the World - Philly's 7th Ward

GIANNA WAS RIGHT, HER DADDY CHANGED THE WORLD

Four weeks ago, a Black man was lynched. In 2020. 

I remind myself of that fact each day so that I do not forget what we saw, what happened—that we witnessed a man take his last breath. In the days following, we watched people take to the streets, in the midst of a pandemic, willing to risk their health to fight against systemic and systematic racism. 

Gianna Floyd, George Floyd’s daughter, perched on former NBA player Stephen Jackson’s shoulders, boldly declared, “Daddy changed the world!” 

The gravity of those words is reverberating through policies, practices, and interactions across this country, and specifically, our relationship with law enforcement in our education systems. 

THIS INSIDIOUS POLICE PRESENCE WAS A STAPLE OF MY MIDDLE SCHOOL EXPERIENCE AND HAS SHAPED MY ADVOCACY TODAY IN CALLING FOR THE DISMANTLING OF THE SCHOOL-TO-PRISON PIPELINE

As I stood next to strangers while protesting in my hometown several weeks ago, I demanded that the Toledo Superintendent dissolve the school system’s contract with the police. This insidious police presence was a staple of my middle school experience and has shaped my advocacy today in calling for the dismantling of the school-to-prison pipeline

BLACK AND LATINO STUDENTS ARE THREE TIMES MORE LIKELY TO BE SUSPENDED FOR THEIR BEHAVIOR THAN A WHITE STUDENT FOR THE SAME OFFENSE.

The school-to-prison pipeline describes a system in which students are referred to law enforcement rather than the office for behavior. Black and CONTINUE READING: Gianna Was Right, Her Daddy Changed the World - Philly's 7th Ward

HELP Committee chair calls for federal aid to help schools reopen safely - Education Votes

HELP Committee chair calls for federal aid to help schools reopen safely - Education Votes

HELP Committee chair calls for federal aid to help schools reopen safely

To help schools and colleges reopen safely this fall, retiring Senate HELP Committee Chair Lamar Alexander (R-TN) is calling on the federal government to provide additional funding—though not nearly as much as educators have sought. “The surest step back to normalcy in our country is when 70-75 million college and high school and elementary school students go back to school,” he said. “If we need more money for that, I’m for that.” This support is helpful and a signal that educators’ advocacy is having an impact. But to move anything forward soon, many more Republican senators will need to put pressure on Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).

NEA’s priorities for the next coronavirus package include at least $175 billion to stabilize education funding, at least $4 billion to equip students with hot spots and devices to help narrow the digital divide and close the homework gap, at least $56 million in directed funding for personal protective equipment, relief for student loan borrowers, and at least $4 billion to protect voting rights and make voting by mail more widely available. LEARN MORE

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Email your senators and tell them to take action to reopen schools and campuses safely and save educators’ jobs.

HELP Committee chair calls for federal aid to help schools reopen safely - Education Votes

Harley Litzelman: Cops Don’t Keep Kids Safe at School | Diane Ravitch's blog

Harley Litzelman: Cops Don’t Keep Kids Safe at School | Diane Ravitch's blog

Harley Litzelman: Cops Don’t Keep Kids Safe at School

Harvey Litzelman, a teacher in California, explains why police don’t make schools safe.

When he first entered teaching, before he ever got any lessons about teaching, he was shown a video about how to handle a school shooter. The video was called “Run Hide Defend.” It made clear that the teacher was the first line of defense for students.

He writes:

Having taught in Oakland for several years after watching that video, I’ve seen very clearly how cycles of poverty, violence, and trauma manifest on my campus. I’ve seen students brutally attack one another; I’ve seen their adult family members join in. I’ve heard rumors and reports of weapons changing hands and threats of school shootings. And in every single instance, I’ve seen unarmed professionals trained to work with young people leverage the relationships they have with students to deescalate tense situations and repair harm after violent ones. Never have I seen a situation that would have been better handled by an officer of the Oakland School Police Department (OSPD) or the city’s Oakland Police Department.

The police do not keep kids (or adults) safe at school, whether from school shootings or any lesser offense. Teachers, support staff, and students themselves do. This is an argument that requires us to challenge the CONTINUE READING: Harley Litzelman: Cops Don’t Keep Kids Safe at School | Diane Ravitch's blog

NYC Educator: Another Letter from the Chancellor

NYC Educator: Another Letter from the Chancellor

Another Letter from the Chancellor

Dear Colleagues,  

Today is the last day of the most challenging, most intense school year we have ever experienced. You got tossed into the deep end, and I shaved my mustache. Every single one of you confronted major disruptions to your lives, which often imposed great stress on you and your families. And yet I still plan to fire thousands of you so I can hire people here at Tweed for 200K each to join me at gala luncheons.

I am absolutely preening with pride, the proudest professional pride that pricks and prods ponderously at the prickliest of princesses. My gratitude to you runs deep. Console yourself with that after you get those pink slips. Believe me, my well-compensated staff and I will continue to think about you as you toil away at whatever menial jobs you can muster during an active apocalypse.

This school year was divided, of course, between “pre-COVID” and “post-COVID.”  Before the pandemic upended our lives, we opened more pre-K Dual Language programs , Community Schools, and reached record high college enrollment rates . We hope you all remember that stuff as opposed to being sent to work in hotbeds of infection even as we deemed it too risky for rich people to sit in $800 seats to Hamilton. Try not to dwell on how we removed guidance counselors, cut the budget, and made you the most overqualified employee at Kinko's.

You suddenly confronted the enormous challenge of transforming to remote teaching, learning, and working. Many of you. like me, had no idea what you were doing and just hoped for the best. Yet with amazing support from one another, and none whatsoever from us, you all managed to shift to an entirely new way of conducting your work. Believe me, after all that work you did, it isn't easy to just throw you under the bus like this.

The personal toll of the coronavirus on our City, our friends and families, and the DOE itself is tragic. It has left us all struggling with a relentless sense of grief. Fortunately, it hasn't given the mayor or me so much grief that we aren't willing to send those of you we aren't firing right back into the belly of the beast. You CONTINUE READING: NYC Educator: Another Letter from the Chancellor

CURMUDGUCATION: TN: When Charters Abandon The Community

CURMUDGUCATION: TN: When Charters Abandon The Community

TN: When Charters Abandon The Community

So here we go again.

Another angry piece written about the abrupt closing of a charter school-- two, actually. This time it's a pair of KIPP schools in Memphis.

The closings were announced in April, the reasoning a little fuzzy.

KIPP Memphis Preparatory Elementary and KIPP Memphis Preparatory Middle were par of Tennessee's failed experiment, the Achievement School District, a collection of schools taken over by the state and, generally, turned over to charter groups to run. In April, the board of the two KIPPs voted to shut them down. It was the Covid, they said. The Covid "prevented opportunities for the schools to receive long-term funding from historic philanthropic resources," which maybe-- I mean, reports were that the pandemic hasn't been hard on the rich folks. And aren't charters supposed to be able to operate on the same per-pupil dollars that public schools get? I mean, how many public schools are depending on their philanthropic backers to help them do well? The rest of the explanations don't get any better.

James Boyd, chairman of the KIPP Memphis board of directors said in a statement, “We strongly believe this decision is in the best interest of our KIPP Memphis community and is a step in the right direction to improve our organization’s ability to build a stronger network of schools.” This sounds at least a bit more honest-- "We did what was best for the company as a whole."

David Pettiette, a volunteer at one of the schools (so presumably not funded by philanthropists), lays out what happened after the announcement:

In an effort to limit bad press, KIPP offered a Q&A conference call to address the school closures so CONTINUE READING: CURMUDGUCATION: TN: When Charters Abandon The Community

THIS WEEK WITH NEWBLACKMAN (IN EXILE)

NewBlackMan (in Exile)

THIS WEEK WITH NEWBLACKMAN (IN EXILE)

Music and Visuals: "Lockdown" -- Anderson .Paak

by Mark Anthony Neal / 16h

Visuals for "Lockdown" by Anderson .Paak

Music and Visuals: “Freeze Tag" – Dinner Party (Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, Kamasi Washington & 9th Wonder) feat. Phoelix

by Mark Anthony Neal / 17h

Visuals for "Freeze Tag", the lead single from Dinner Party , the eponymous debut of the super-group Terrace Martin , Robert Glasper , Kamasi Washington & 9th Wonder featuring Phoelix.

Teaching Ava DuVernay's 13th: #Docuhistory with Walter D. Greason & Kevin Gannon

by Mark Anthony Neal / 17h

'In this public conversation about teaching 13th (2016), Ava DuVernay 's documentary film exploring the history of racial inequality in the United States, Walter D. Greason and Kevin Gannon join moderator Joe Schmidt of the New York City Department of Education to discuss questions and pedagogical avenues raised by the film.' -- Scholars and Publics

Movement & Visuals for "Motherless Child”—MusiQology featuring Renaldo Maurice & Vince Anthony

by Mark Anthony Neal / 2d

“[T]he most radical art is not protest art but works that take us to another place, envision a different way of seeing, perhaps, a different way of feeling.” -- Robin D.G. Kelley Short film for "Motherless Child" from MusiQology 's A Spiritual Vibe, vol 1 featuring movement by Renaldo Maurice and vocals by Vince Anthony.

Bryant Gumbel on the 'Black Tax'

by Mark Anthony Neal / 2d

' #RealSports host Bryant Gumbel offers a personal commentary and shares what he calls ‘the black tax.' -- HBO

The Life and Work of Octavia E. Butler

by Mark Anthony Neal / 2d

' Natalie Russell , Assistant Curator of Literary Collections at the Huntington Library, Museum, and Botanical Gardens, discusses the life, work and legacy of award-winning science fiction writer Octavia E. Butler .' -- All Of It

Reconstructing Black Politics, Again

by Mark Anthony Neal / 2d

'The urgent needs of Black politics today have roots in the failures of the Reconstruction era. Today, a look at how that history led us to the present moment, and what the future could hold. On this episode of Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast , Adam Serwer , staff writer at The Atlantic talks about how to be anti-racist now and the past and future of Black politics.'

JUN 23

Jennifer L. Eberhardt: How Racial Bias Works—and How to Disrupt It

by Mark Anthony Neal / 3d

'Our brains create categories to make sense of the world, recognize patterns and make quick decisions. But this ability to categorize also exacts a heavy toll in the form of unconscious bias. In this powerful talk, psychologist Jennifer L. Eberhardt explores how our biases unfairly target Black people at all levels of society -- from schools and social media to policing and criminal justice -- an

Bernice Johnson Reagon On Leading Freedom Songs During The Civil Rights Movement

by Mark Anthony Neal / 3d

'In the 1960s, Bernice Johnson Reagon was a founding member of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee's Freedom Singers. In 1988, she spoke to Fresh Air about the songs she sang as an activist.'

Black Wall Street And Its Legacy In America

by Mark Anthony Neal / 3d

'A century ago, O.W. Gurley built an empire of African American businesses in Tulsa. Though it all came burning down in the massacre of 1921, new generations of entrepreneurs rose from the ashes.' -- Forbes

"The Only Little Black Girl in Anthropology": Marina Magloire on Transnational Black Feminism

by Mark Anthony Neal / 3d

' Marina Magloire , Black feminist scholar of African American and diasporic literature, presented this paper that tells the story of a friendship deferred. When their paths first crossed in the 1930s, Katherine Dunham was a glamorous Midwesterner who would later be known for her popularizations of Afro-diasporic dance forms in American performance; while Zora Neale Hurston was a charming Souther

Unladylike2020: Gladys Bentley—Gender-Bending Performer and Musician

by Mark Anthony Neal / 3d

' Gladys Bentley (1907-1960) joined New York’s Harlem Renaissance jazz scene at age 16 and became an instant sensation and gender identity pioneer, performing piano and vocals at the most popular gay bars, wearing men’s clothing, and openly flirting with women in the audience.' -- American Masters PBS

Lynn Whitfield Talks Greenleaf, Justice for George Floyd, and COVID-19

by Mark Anthony Neal / 3d

On the episode of The New Norm with Selena Hill , actress Lynn Whitfield discusses her series Greenleaf , the killing of George Floyd, and COVID-19 crisis. -- Black Enterprise

Shane Battier: The 'inspiration gap' kills innovation. How can we do better?

by Mark Anthony Neal / 3d

' What is the inspiration gap? Inspiration comes in many forms: successful role models who went before us, positive words, and coaching from the people in our lives, even the act of setting a goal for ourselves and sticking to it. But inspiration is in some ways a luxury. The financial, familial, and infrastructure constraints that children in at-risk communities face every day must, by necessity

ABWH TV: Black Women's Resistance & History

by Mark Anthony Neal / 3d

'In this episode of ABWH TV, Professors Kellie Carter Jackson , Tera Hunter , Sarah Haley , Crystal N Feimster , Robyn Spencer , and Ashley Farmer discuss Black Women's Resistance and History.' -- Association of Black Women Historians

JUN 21

On the Banality of Everyday Anti-Blackness

400+by Mark Anthony Neal / 5d

by Matthew Somoroff | @matty_som | NewBlackMan (in Exile) At about 9 a.m. on Friday, June 19, my doorbell rang unexpectedly. I looked through the living-room windows and saw a white woman I didn’t recognize. She’d come to let me know that the “Black Lives Matter” sign that sits at the edge of my front lawn, next to the street, had been spray-painted. Black matte paint now covered the word Black

JUN 20

History of Black Cowboys

by Mark Anthony Neal / 6d

'Author Walter Thompson-Hernández joins All Of It to discuss his book The Compton Cowboys: The New Generation of Cowboys in America's Urban Heartland and the history of black cowboys in America.'

Revisiting 'Paris is Burning'

by Mark Anthony Neal / 6d

'Director Jennie Livingston joins All Of It to discuss the legacy of the 1990 documentary, Paris Is Burning. The film is now available in a new restoration on Blu-ray and DVD released by the Criterion Collection. Livingston is joined by Sol Williams Pendavis , who is featured in the film.'

Don Bryant Discusses New Album, Marriage and Love

by Mark Anthony Neal / 6d

'NPR's Scott Simon speaks with longtime Soul singer Don Bryant about his new album You Make Me Feel .'

Teyana Taylor On 'The Album' And Asserting Her Creative Vision

by Mark Anthony Neal / 6d

'NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Teyana Taylor about The Album , her anticipated follow-up to the Kanye West -produced K.T.S.E. that features guests like Lauryn Hill , Missy Elliott and Erykah Badu .'

The Overlooked Reality of Police Violence Against Disabled Black Americans

by Mark Anthony Neal / 6d

' Sandra Bland , Eric Garner , Freddie Gray , Tanisha Anderson , Deborah Danner , Ezell Ford , Alfred Olango , and Keith Lamont Scott were all Black and tragically killed by police. They also have one other thing in common: they were all disabled . As police brutality against Black people continues to be in the national spotlight, the reality of police violence against disabled people—especially

JUN 19

Marcus Strickland—"On My Mind Remix” (feat. Bilal, Pharoahe Monch & Greg Tate)

by Mark Anthony Neal / 7d

' ON MY MIND , a film by Petra Richterová & Jennifer Galvin , is an abstract, Afro-cosmic film, aesthetically and symbolically grounded in African culture and New York history. Based on vanguard saxophonist and composer Marcus Strickland ’s latest track "On My Mind remix," urbanscapes and spiritual objects bring these artists into a rare, contemporary dialogue, reflecting the song’s timeless cont

Left of Black S10:E17—Jazz Saxophonist Joshua Redman

by Mark Anthony Neal / 7d

Jazz legend Joshua Redman joined Duke Professor and Left of Black host Mark Anthony Neal at one of Durham’s iconic pubs, T he Pinhook , for a stirring discussion about the state of jazz, his own musical journey, and the legacy of his father–– great jazz saxophonist Walter Dewey Redman . Duke Performances brought Redman to Durham to stage his ongoing tribute concert, Still Dreaming , dedicated to

Music and Vision: Moses Sumney—"Keeps Me Alive”

by Mark Anthony Neal / 7d

Visuals for Moses Sumney 's "Keeps Me Alive”, from his double-album græ .

Delroy Lindo on Starring in Spike Lee's 'Da 5 Bloods' and Engaging with Today's Racial Justice Uprising

by Mark Anthony Neal / 7d

' Spike Lee ’s new Netflix film, Da 5 Bloods , follows a group of Black Vietnam War veterans who return to present-day Vietnam to find the body of their Squad Leader, Stormin Norm, who died in combat. Through archival clips and flashbacks, the film highlights the complicated position that many Black soldiers found themselves in during the Vietnam War, fighting for a cause they didn’t necessarily

Music and Vision: Leon Bridges—"Sweeter" feat Terrace Martin

by Mark Anthony Neal / 7d

Official visuals for "Sweeter" by Leon Bridges featuring Terrace Martin .

Jaki Shelton Green — "Oh My Brother"

by Mark Anthony Neal / 7d

With George Floyd as muse, Jaki Shelton Green offers a tribute to Black lives, befitting the master poet that she is. "Oh My Brother" is featured on her new recording The River Speaks of Thirst .

40 Acres And A Mule: How Post Civil War Policy Kicked Off Racial Wealth Inequality

by Mark Anthony Neal / 7d

' The destruction of Black property, combined with policies designed to keep Black Americans behind their white counterparts, resulted in the racial wealth gap this country is still facing today, says William Darity , a professor of public policy, African and African American studies and economics, and director of the Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity at Duke University. This is attribut

Music and Vision: "Oh, What a Beautiful City"—Dr. Guy's Musiqology featuring Bridget Ramsey

by Mark Anthony Neal / 7d

Music and vision for "Oh, What a Beautiful City" from Dr. Guy's Musiqology's latest recording A Spiritual Vibe, Vol. 1 . The song features vocals from Bridget Ramsey .

NewBlackMan (in Exile)