I love summer!
Somehow Dana, Brian, and I all had the day off from work today! It was great! We spent some time at the pool, had some lunch, and spent some time in Kensington too! There were a bunch of cute little kids there, and it was so interesting for me to listen to them. The oldest kid was saying, "I know division. Do you know the division method?" and the younger boy was pleading to be able to launch the kite, and the little girl was just trying to master the whole hand-eye-coordination thing. It was great. I can't wait to be a mommy! (Although not too soon--I think I'll just be an aunt to Kaden for a while. :) But, it was a wonderful day! I love Dana and Brian!
Dahh, but unfortunately, I was reminded of why I hate Milford when I was flipping through the Milford Times. I was looking for an article that Rachel told me about with Ms. Ryan using Twister as a method of alternative assessments, and I stumbled upon the editorial page. Some parents wrote in complaining about the Day of Silence, but it was obvious from their writings that they completely missed the point of the day. The parents complained that kids will be turned gay from being exposed to this and that homosexuals essentially have relationships only for sexual acts. "The gay/lesbian lifestyle is about sexual activity." WTF!!!!!!! When will people realize that homosexual relationships, just like heterosexual ones, are built upon trust, respect, love, humor, playfulness--all the same crap as any other relationship. "I am outraged that Milford High School endorses this lifestyle/behavior, and in addition, puts it out there for my kid to absorb." WTF?!!! I've never heard of anyone becoming gay by osmosis. And these parents don't want this talked about in school at all because it's not the school's place to do so? It's in the district's mission statement to not discriminate and provide a good learning experience, and I think acceptance and increasing knowledge on any subject IS the school's responsibility! Schools exist to make students more well-rounded. A kid who is a genius but can't get along well with anyone isn't going to do so well in the world.
Gahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!! That was a bit long, but I could easily write more. I miss East Lansing very much right now, and my TE 250 class and my good buddies in particular. I honestly cried the whole way home from Brian's, and had de Falla not been on 90.5 right then, it would have been worse. This upsets me like none other.
When will we learn? When will we learn that it's not ok to disrespect each other? When will we learn to embrace differences? When will we learn to open our eyes and see the world around us for all the wonderful contributions and moments that can be made when we understand each other? When will we learn to step outside of our comfort zones and push for change? When will we learn?
We Allies really need to come together and do something about this.
I told mom that I want to write into the Times in response, and she said, "You really don't want to teach in Milford, do you? You might not be hired if you say something." wtf. I seriously don't want to work in a district that wouldn't respect me for that. I'll drop out of teaching and switch to politics. My curriculum will include people of all different races, religions, genders, sexual orientations, etc. I don't want to just teach the dead white guys. There's so much more to music, to science, to life in general, and it's not fair to the students to not teach everything. The classroom is the perfect place to teach about acceptance and the inequal distribution of power in society and what can be done about it.
I'm soooooooooooo frustrated. Going to burst. Soooo frustrated.
Dahh, but unfortunately, I was reminded of why I hate Milford when I was flipping through the Milford Times. I was looking for an article that Rachel told me about with Ms. Ryan using Twister as a method of alternative assessments, and I stumbled upon the editorial page. Some parents wrote in complaining about the Day of Silence, but it was obvious from their writings that they completely missed the point of the day. The parents complained that kids will be turned gay from being exposed to this and that homosexuals essentially have relationships only for sexual acts. "The gay/lesbian lifestyle is about sexual activity." WTF!!!!!!! When will people realize that homosexual relationships, just like heterosexual ones, are built upon trust, respect, love, humor, playfulness--all the same crap as any other relationship. "I am outraged that Milford High School endorses this lifestyle/behavior, and in addition, puts it out there for my kid to absorb." WTF?!!! I've never heard of anyone becoming gay by osmosis. And these parents don't want this talked about in school at all because it's not the school's place to do so? It's in the district's mission statement to not discriminate and provide a good learning experience, and I think acceptance and increasing knowledge on any subject IS the school's responsibility! Schools exist to make students more well-rounded. A kid who is a genius but can't get along well with anyone isn't going to do so well in the world.
Gahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!! That was a bit long, but I could easily write more. I miss East Lansing very much right now, and my TE 250 class and my good buddies in particular. I honestly cried the whole way home from Brian's, and had de Falla not been on 90.5 right then, it would have been worse. This upsets me like none other.
When will we learn? When will we learn that it's not ok to disrespect each other? When will we learn to embrace differences? When will we learn to open our eyes and see the world around us for all the wonderful contributions and moments that can be made when we understand each other? When will we learn to step outside of our comfort zones and push for change? When will we learn?
We Allies really need to come together and do something about this.
I told mom that I want to write into the Times in response, and she said, "You really don't want to teach in Milford, do you? You might not be hired if you say something." wtf. I seriously don't want to work in a district that wouldn't respect me for that. I'll drop out of teaching and switch to politics. My curriculum will include people of all different races, religions, genders, sexual orientations, etc. I don't want to just teach the dead white guys. There's so much more to music, to science, to life in general, and it's not fair to the students to not teach everything. The classroom is the perfect place to teach about acceptance and the inequal distribution of power in society and what can be done about it.
I'm soooooooooooo frustrated. Going to burst. Soooo frustrated.