The subtle racism of Seattle's 'trusted institutions' continues to impact our kids

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The subtle racism of Seattle's 'trusted institutions' continues to impact our kids

The increase in physical violence against Asian Americans is not a mysterious aberration. It’s the result of hateful rhetoric from our last President, among others. It’s part of a history of anti-Asian racism and violence that is too often overlooked or minimized. And it’s also being made possible by insensitive, dehumanizing language that has been normalized.

Take this sign, hanging casually in a Swedish Hospital health facility, perpetuating dangerous stereotypes during a time of such specific violence.

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The entire education system is the culprit, and Denise Juneau is part of it. So, what do we do?

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The entire education system is the culprit, and Denise Juneau is part of it. So, what do we do?

By Matt Halvorson

I’m not sure we need to retain Juneau, and I’m not sure we need to let her go. I just feel that it only makes sense to let Juneau go if we are fully committed to being this hard on every part of the System — only if we are finally we are committed to transforming everything — right now.

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All parents were summoned when George Floyd cried out for his Momma

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All parents were summoned when George Floyd cried out for his Momma

If you are a parent, George Floyd named you by name. We are on a path toward abolition. Consider that it took a Civil War to end chattel slavery, and that the Montgomery Bus Boycott alone lasted 382 days.

How committed are you to this? What will you do? And what will you keep doing?

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As illusions and excuses crumble under the weight of COVID-19, we find a moment of truth: What new world will we create for our kids?

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As illusions and excuses crumble under the weight of COVID-19, we find a moment of truth: What new world will we create for our kids?

What new world will we create for students and families in the wake of a pandemic that, for now, has only just begun? What are we learning as COVID-19 brings tumbling down the illusions and excuses that propped up the old system? How will our system of education change? How will we move forward as parents and teachers, school administrators and students?

Who will we choose to be now?

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How Do We Create Spaces for Healing as Educators of Color?

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How Do We Create Spaces for Healing as Educators of Color?

Education tends to make the most rational people seem crazy. So, it begs the question, how do we heal in these sick environments? My go-to answer is to typically just burn it all down and start anew, but we know that those efforts usually just end up looking like a new emperor in the same old clothes.

So, where does our healing come from?

It starts with acknowledging the hurt that has been caused by systems of oppression -- and the equal importance of finding healing for the students and often-overlooked educators who bear the deepest wounds.

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Catching systemic racism in the act in Seattle Public Schools

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Catching systemic racism in the act in Seattle Public Schools

Systemic racism is often hard to see in action.

It’s easy to look back and wonder, how did we get here? How do we have such deep-rooted opportunity gaps in our schools? How do we have so few Black teachers? How can there be such a thing as a “school-to-prison” pipeline? How do we have so few women of color in positions of elected leadership?

These systemic issues are not necessarily carried out by people of malicious intent. They are carried out by all of us every day as we make seemingly reasonable decisions, and through polices and processes that masquerade as neutral.

We are in the eleventh hour of one such process, but it’s not too late! Today — this very evening — we have a chance to catch the system in the act. So let’s do it.

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Systemic oppression demands a systemic exodus

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Systemic oppression demands a systemic exodus

Our traditional public schools are systemically inequitable — in Seattle, in Washington State, and everywhere else in the United States. Put another way, our schools are consistently producing inequitable outcomes based on race and family income, and it’s a form of systemic oppression.

We know this, most of us. But for most of us, that’s all we do. We know it. It’s mostly an intellectual idea.

So instead of idle knowledge, let’s consider for a moment what that really means — systemic oppression — and what it means for us as human beings.

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Seattle Public Schools unveiled a new strategic plan based on targeted universalism! Will it be enough?

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Seattle Public Schools unveiled a new strategic plan based on targeted universalism! Will it be enough?

The opportunity gap, as we all know, is a byproduct of systemic oppression playing out in our schools. The way to upend systemic oppression is to find a way to turn the system on its head. Targeted universalism applies that table-flipping mentality in a constructive way. I’m so surprised and pleased to hear this idea mentioned as our schools’ strategic north star.

But…

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Our Lives on this Earth: A Story of Soul Connecting with Spirit

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Our Lives on this Earth: A Story of Soul Connecting with Spirit

By Ryan Flesch

It was Nov. 6, 2016. I had spent three months following the Water Protectors camping out in the Standing Rock reservation in North Dakota on social media, and listening quietly to the intellect of my heart. My heart wanted me there, so I posted to social media: “I have spent too much time sitting in the comfort of my own home saying to myself that something I see is wrong. I'm getting up and I'm going to Standing Rock to show my support with my life, not the share button.”

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