There are a number of people who say they are promoting “the civil rights issue of our time” even as they advocate for schools that just happen to be segregated and that have no unions to represent their employees.
Jonathan Pelto reminds us what Martin Luther King Jr. said and did by providing the audio and video clips of his final days.
He died helping black sanitation workers in Memphis organize a union.
Please take the time to watch and listen.
And if you are a teacher, show it to your students and call it “informational text” so it relates to the Common Core.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
One of the perks of working at school named for Dr. King is that we got ample opportunities to read all his work and have school-wide discussions. The beauty of it lay in watching the light in my students’ eyes as they realized the man was a revolutionary and involved in a lot more than “desegregation”.
LikeLike
I think everyone needs to listen to this tribute song for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
This song was written in remembrance of everything he did for us. Together we can keep Dr. King’s dream alive.
LikeLike
“And if you are a teacher, show it to your students and call it ‘informational text’ so it relates to the Common Core.”
Excellent idea!
LikeLike
Thank you, Dr. Ravitch. I intend to show the video to my students.
As one watches this video, on many levels, you could substitute the words “sanitation worker” with “teacher”.
Dr. King so eloquently reminded us of the “dignity of labor”. Certainly, the dignity of the work of a teacher has been under attack for sometime. If a group of workers can be demoralized, they can be weakened. We must recognize the tactics of the “reformers” for what they are, remain resolute, stay informed, and stick together.
Dr. King was a great communicator, I believe, because he used simple but powerful words. When I watched the video and he used the ordinary word “dignity” it brought tears to my eyes. Throughout history, so many human struggles were based on the pursuit of dignity. The establishment of “dignity” is certainly at the heart of the struggle teachers face today.
LikeLike
New Yorkers are disillusioned with mayoral control.
While it is true that corporate reformers insist on mayoral control–or control by the governor or state commissioner or a “special master”–anything to remove democratic control–New Yorkers have soured on the idea.
In a recent poll, less than 20% want the mayor to control the schools in the future.
We know why the corporate reformers want mayoral control–more privatization faster.
LikeLike
Sadly, Dr. King knew that the struggles were to be hard and many of the dreams would be very hard to attain. And, too sadly, he perished before he could see some of what he preached was attained. The short vid of the night before at Memphis saddens me even more.
LikeLike