Meaningful Moment

I was just in the elevator of my building with other young Black people who were talking about where they went to high school. One said she went to an area Catholic school, and so I shared that I work at another Catholic school in the area. Her immediate response when she heard what school was, "They were so good. I really wanted to go there!" It made me feel such a rush of pride for my school. I love my school so much that it's always nice to hear that other people admire it too. I feel fortunate to be a part of something special.

Madeleine Albright Luncheon

I had the honor of attending the National Democratic Institute's Madeleine Albright Luncheon this month. There were many thoughtful speakers. 

Mimoza Kusari-Lila, an MP in Kosovo, shared that in her experience, doing the right thing is not enough for politicians - they also need to talk about doing the right thing. She also said, "You keep throwing stones at me, I'll keep paving roads with them." 

Seyi Akiwowo, a councillor in the UK, discussed the significance of the distinction between robust debate and silencing when people disagree. She also talked about the importance of representation. 

Madeleine Albright talked about how women should not be looked at as victims. She said that she wants to build upon the slogan, "If you see something, say something;" she believes that we also need DO something. And she concluded by saying that women are not asking for our rights, we were born with them.

Madeleine Albright herself is not universally admired, but I think she represents the complexities that politicians face. There are no perfect politicians because there are no perfect people and there are rarely perfect solutions to the challenges they are trying to address. I believe that Madeleine Albright followed her conscience. I may disagree with some of her choices and language along the way, but my sense is that she continues to learn and grow. That is my greatest hope for all of us.

Teaching Empathy

The article 8 Ways to Teach Kids to See the Best in Others has led me to reflect on just how much of my job includes the work of empathy building. From my Genocide Studies class, to the service and social justice work I lead, to the conversations in my office, teaching empathy is a constant in each day. And honestly, it is my work of which I am proud.

Reverend Barber calls us to conscience

I loved reading this article in Sojourners about the Poor People's Campaign because it is reflective of my experience of Reverend Barber. The beginning of the article tells a story of Rev. Barber sternly asking people at a Poor People's Campaign gathering to take a knee instead of gleefully celebrating at the event. Similarly, on a Skype call for the movement a few weeks ago, Rev. Barber reminded people that as joyful as we may be about coming together to do justice, we must also hold in our hearts are pain of the bombs we had dropped on Syria the night before. It was a moment that will stick with me because I do relish in opportunities to do justice. Rev. Barber reminds us that we must decenter ourselves in the work and center those on the margins, those whose experience is decidedly less joyful. Last night I had the honor of hearing him preach at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, the church that President Lincoln attended and that was at the heart of the original Poor People's Campaign. Rev. Barber preached from the same pulpit that Dr. King had preached from fifty years ago. What a powerful reminder that we are picking up the baton; the work we do matters. We must take it, though not necessarily ourselves, very seriously.

Life is poetry and prose

Last night I went to see Tracy K. Smith, Poet Laureate for the United States at the Library of Congress. She reminded me of why poetry is so important. Some of my take-aways were:

• Poems ask us to submit to another experience of reality
• Poems are a means of self-preservation, a way of affirming commitment to the belief that our lives can and should matter to one another
• All Americans have something quietly urgent and human to offer one another
• Poems lead us more deeply into ourselves - then into commonalities - and give us new vocabulary
• Poetry makes us humble and vulnerable (it is "vulnerable-making" for both poet and audience)
• Good poems invite oneness. If there is an us vs them dynamic, it's bad poetry, even if it's has social justice themes.

I loved that she would talked about how a poem "behaves." And I love a poem that invites me into my spirituality!

Students Aren't Waiting on the World to Change

I used to really like John Mayer's song "Waiting on the World to Change." I thought he was speaking for me when he said, 
"Now we see everything that's going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don't have the means
To rise above and beat it." 

The students I teach have reframed that for me. They believe that they do have the means to change the world. Today alone I supported students who led an assembly on disarmament, planned a town hall on gun violence, planned a brown bag lunch on the n-word, and led an inter-school discussion on what we can learn from other countries about gun legislation. When I was their age, I cared deeply about the world, but I thought of my sphere of influence as relatively minimal. Although I teach my students that they can make a difference no matter their sphere of influence, I don't think they place limits on the influence they can have. They are plugged in, motivated, and changing the world a day at a time. They have courage and confidence and they act inclusively and always mindful of being in solidarity with those on the margins. They are who I want to be when I grow up.

"soft or hard, love [i]s an act of heroism"

These words come from Ta-Nehisi Coates' Between the World and Me. I saw them performed stunningly this weekend at "Between the World and Me: A Witnessing" at the Kennedy Center. Coates words were brilliantly brought to life by amazing Black performers of all sorts - Broadway stars, tv actors, a singer, a rapper, a tapper - and they were each transcendent.