Did the stars and crew of the anti-union film “Won’t Back Down” know that they were carrying a message on behalf of rightwing extremists?
This writer says no:
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Hi, um, I had the… good fortune of working on this film that, at its heart, is fiction. Notice the careful phrase “based on real events” rather than “a true story.” It is a STORY that is being hijacked by political people to support a cause that many of us, now that we are watching this disgusting spectacle unfold, are conflicted about the film. We are in the business of telling stories, human stories about relationships that have an emotional effect on audiences. We are certainly not told, from the beginning, that our work will be used to support a position we oppose… in the end, honestly, we are just grateful to have a job in a HIGHLY competitive market. I will ask you to please understand that the actors, crew, and other hard working people that worked to tell this story were not engaging is supporting an agenda. We are just paying bills like everyone else. Once involved, we are also committed to the film’s success (read ticket sales and marketability). What is needed is more voices rising up and disrupting these carefully staged events – voices which support the position that public education is a cornerstone… a vital foundation upon which democracy is built. To surrender it to corporate greed and financial motivations is to decimate the future of this country, the equality of its citizens, mobility between classes, and our very freedom. Make noise, be heard, make sure that this debate does not go the way of health care reform that gave us no single payer system but, instead, a gift to insurance companies. Don’t let it be another Iraq War where voices for peace and non-intervention were made inaudible by the media’s drumbeat and ratings whoring. This is a desperate hour – and unless parents rise up everywhere… unless parents GET INVOLVED in their children’s lives and education… our fate as a doomed nation is sealed. |
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Nice mea culpa and I believe the writer.
Now, this is a succinct summation: “This is a desperate hour – and unless parents rise up everywhere… unless parents GET INVOLVED in their children’s lives and education… our fate as a doomed nation is sealed.”
Now, those who participated in this movie can spread the word and use their influence – far and wide. I hope they do. They have a podium that most of us are lacking. They have it, and I hope they use it wisely. Godspeed.
I hide my name because I hope I might get another teaching job, however unlikely, so I understand the writer’s reluctance to come out and appreciate that he/she wrote. The more opportunities we can give ordinary people to speak their minds without fear of reprisals, the better.
Actually, real courage requires this writer and anyone who stands against injustice to reveal themselves. Those who push their agenda thru this movie are cowards and do so surreptitiously. At some point in struggles like this one for education and our democracy we have to give up our own selfish fears for the greater good. This writer has real power in revealing him/herself but none in anonymity. I may seem harsh but it is true.
2o2t,
More likely than not those with whom you would be interviewing haven’t even heard of this blog. I have asked two of our principals if they read this blog and they had no clue as to its existence and had never heard of Diane (sorry, Diane!!).
But then again I have a position and heaven forbid have “tenure”-ha ha, which means absolutely nothing as if an administrator wants to get rid of you they will lie through their teeth to do so-been through it and it ain’t pretty. At this point I don’t care if the powers that be don’t like what I have to say. For the most part they haven’t liked it for about 18 years now.
Funny, the two folks who posted about revealing identities…have remained anonymous.
That’s OK with me, but r emember “pots and kettles”and calling others out.
Duane…You “Rock!”…:) ( and you too, Diane)
So, let me get this straight, you absolve yourself of guilt for earning money working on a film filled with misleading political acts because you need to pay the bills while educated, dedicated, certified teachers will certainly be released from their parent-triggered “choice” school closing? No way do I believe crew members and actors who participated in this film were left in the dark about the funding cartel’s deceitful message. There is a script, isn’t there? And I’d bet it only matters now when box office returns are the measure of success. Hang your head in shame for being callously disrespectful to every teacher who helped you get where you are and able to pay your bills.
Bravo! Selling your soul for gold gets you a well deserved place in the fiery pits.
So which billionaire funder is stepping up to make sure that “more voices rising up” is actually given a huge microphone, like this film? I can sympathize with needing to pay the bills, since it is my way of doing that that is under attack from this film…will the writer of this note remember this day when Wall Street decides that *his* union is in the way of profits? SAG, Writer’s Guild, you really just want to fall on “just doing our jobs” on this one?
People rose up about Iraq, people spoke out about the health care debate. Corporations made sure that they stayed unheard. I would think that someone in the business of crafting narrative fictions would understand the process of editing to create a certain perspective. Apparently not.
Shame on us for “eating our own” and those who would support us educators. Either we walk the talk or be divided as our detractors would hope. Either we engage with and support all of those with differing views or we will be on the outside looking in.
As a personal example, I’ll use myself. I am an educator in Texas where there are no unions (collective bargaining is against the law for public employees), tenure is defined as surviving a probationary period of 1 to 3 years, and due process is a guaranteed right of your term contract. I have been a classroom teacher for 10 years, a principal for 13 years, and an assistant superintendent for 11 years. During that time I have never seen or participated in the railroading of a teacher. However, I do know of examples of it happening. We are all subject to the ethics of our superiors, whether you are in a union or not. I have no problem not having unions nor would I like to see them begun here. That said, I was a history minor in college and am at least functionally literate in the history of unions and why they were necessary. It is part of the culture of the working class. Despite my differences in philosophy, however, I am in full support of educators who are part of unions. My point is, like all zealots, we educators passionately believe in what we do. We need to be includers of all who give us support in any way. We must educate them further so that they understand what we see, not exclude through attacks because they don’t match us exactly.
That is what the reformers do to us each and every day. Where there are unions, the attackers use weaknesses (union tactics that appear to parents as self centered) as leverage. In Texas, the reformers accuse “educrats” of denying parents choice in speeches that espouse Texas values. Without education in what is happening both below the surface and in the bigger picture, the public and most importantly the parents will buy the propaganda. Lets work together.
I do not understand how you can say there are no unions in Texas. There are both NEA and AFT affiliates throughout the state. True, you may not have the right to collective bargaining as is true in other states, but you do have unions. Membership in those unions is important. Those unions are trying to protect what Texas teachers do have and to make Texas schools better for its students.
What this anonymous writer says without a public stance means nothing. He/she might have never written it. The post by Elizabeth says everything. I’m always amazed that people don’t realize we have homes, taxes, food bills, utility bills and families to support. We work for our money. We contribute to our communities not just with our money, but our profession.
For what it’s worth, Dennis VanRoekel saw the film and thought it was a “great movie.”
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2012/09/in-2012-democratic-convention-unity-without-unions.html
well, it isn’t worth much to me
@Elizabeth – Are you serious? First, since you don’t seem to get it, MOST films made in this country today have a political subtext. It is the nature of the industry. ANd it applies as well to television. Second, what is your problem with the people that made this film making money off of it. They worked hard to create it. They deserve to get paid for it. And finally, I am a screenwriter. Guess what? My brother is a teacher. Actually just graduated. But just like you don’t know me, and you don’t know him, you don’t know the people that made this film. How can you judge people and accuse them of callousness and disrespect toward Anyone? In fact, how can you judge them? You Don’t Know Them. And to anyone else; since I don’t want to write a book here; the claim of extremism is a two-way street. If you generalize and group everyone together claiming prejudice, the embody an example of that which you despise. And to make the statement that you “work for a living” is to imply that those whom you criticize do not. That, as was so eloquently put earlier, is callous and disrespectful. The only thing I would add is I hope all of you would look at both sides of this issue without bias, and look at the facts objectively. There is not one intelligent person in this world that would make the claim that education is unimportant. Most would agree that it is our foremost priority, for young people and ourselves. The decline in education isn’t traceable to rallying cries against teachers or the education system. The decline in education, at least in this country, is based in allowing bias, prejudice, and judgemental tones into the content of that which is being taught. (Something I spent many years loathing, but could do nothing to change while actually in school.) My good friend (an AG teacher in Gainesville, TX), and my brother have made the statement [I paraphrase] that “…educators have the greatest responsability in this world. They are trusted to positively influence the lives and minds of young people. And they will surely fail if they inject their own opinions and prejudice into their teachings.”
I pray that the day I have children of my own and I leave them in the care of their teachers, that I can rest easy knowing they are only growing mentally, emotionally, and intellectually. Because that is the true threat to education.
Thanks for your comment. I cannot let stand your suggestion that education is in decline in this country. It is not. But it is under attack.
I apologize, I didn’t mean it that way. I do believe it is under attack. However I do believe complacency amongst some (definitely not all) educators in public schools in this country is a contributing factor.