BLM is Making One Wrong Choice

The Black Lives Matter movement decided to include some misguided solidarity with the Palestinian movement on their platform; here's one response to that: http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/210578/black-lives-matter-to-israel (it seems that BLM is decidedly *inciting* violence; not what it ideally should be doing, but rather in the mode of Al Sharpton:

http://www.nationalreview.com/node/438992/print )

The Divide is Bigger Than Me

Here lies the problem. There are two schools of thought in education.

Old- Teacher lectures and students learn and prove they understand by taking a few tests including a state tests.

New - Teacher facilitates and students working in groups figure out what they need to do. Students take tests together and decide together on the answer. All the students in the group get the same grade.

Students who do well under the old system do OK in the new system, They do great if they are part of the local country club, members of a popular church, or play sports. Those who are not part of the club, church, or sports do fine, but  miss getting 100s. Students who don't do well under the old system like the new system because they get to pass and get to hobknob with the club, church or sports people.

Which populations thrive under the old system and which populations thrive under the new system. And here lies the problem.

True civil rights groups would give students a choice. But they don't want to. They prefer to cut off the right arm of a student who thrives in the old system, but not the new system. And know student in the new system will understand the right arm metaphor.

In the Beginning

And so it begins. Our move from Public Middle School to private school is impending. It’s not just a prep school that will add useful academics to my child’s education; it’s a Jewish school that will add an understanding and appreciation of where she came from - a love of learning. She was only surviving in public school. She aced tests, even the maligned standardized common core state tests she gets perfect scores, but the school consistently berated her love of wanting to learn more and to be accepted for what she can contribute.

What’s happening across the country with regards to multi-cultural education is that it covers every culture except Jewish. And when it covers Jewish, it’s about the holocaust or a world religion video that has anti-Semitic content that is very popular among the “multicultural” teachings of today.  You see, the Jews are considered “white” in the anti “white privilege” message that is popular in our school systems. And a segment of that multicultural movement is scapegoating all things Jewish. Subtle anti-Semitism, guised in multicultural, is worse than blatant condemnation. The seeds are being planted in our young.

My daughter felt it after watching a world religion video in 6^th grade.  Others school districts are watching that and other Jewish bigotry seed videos and content around the country. She is beginning to identity bigotry in all shapes, abilities, and colors and feels it is being directed at her. As a school district official told me when I said we were leaving the public school to go to a Jewish school, well “public school isn’t for everyone.”