Attica Forgotten

Prison are, almost by their nature, places where people become forgotten, but in September 1971, most of the nation's attention was focused on a prison in upper-state New York. It was the Attica State Penitentary, a maximum security prison. Over one thousand inmates, predominantly African American and Puerto Rican rioted, took hostages, and made a list of demands. They wanted federal takeover of the prison, better conditions, amnesty for the crimes committed during the revolt and the removal of the prison’s superintendent. They didn't get it. The prisoners demands to meet with the governor were ignored. In the morning of September 13th, police helicopters dropped tear gas into the courtyard and within 6 minutes, 2200 lethal missiles were discharged. 43 people were killed. 29 years later, the state of New York would pay $8 million dollars to compensate prisoners for documented harassment and torture. The Attica riot would encompass major themes of the time: racism, civil rights, abuse of power and more.

How many students know about this event today? What questions does it raise about our government? About the use of violence by the state? About the inequalities of the justice system? About the factors influencing crime and poverty in America? About what information goes into textbooks and what gets shuffled away? If the study of history has purpose, then it has to be found in the struggle of ethical choices made today concerning the past. Only in doing so can we create or discover our moral compass and national identity. Today, questions regarding inmates in the 'war on terror' are similar to those asked after Attica. Is torture justified? Are inmates entitled to rights and representation? How do we dispense justice? These are questions that need to be asked... if we don't forget Attica.

The Day

Compassion. It's really an underestimated strength. But in the day-to-day work of teaching in a high school, it doesn't get the credit it deserves. On this day, in the middle of my sometimes-mundane activities, I was reminded of my memories of 'the day'. Serendipitously, I was teaching a lesson similar to the one I was covering on Tuesday, seven years ago. My mind exploded then, filled with a strange sense of historical obligation and emotional shock. How fare have we come? How have I changed? What have I learned? How can I get back the feeling of total and complete compassion for everyone in the world that I had on that day, in that moment? The dominoes have fallen. Cause and effect have left their mark on America's role in the world since 'the day'. I've changed too. I've found love. I am more complete and not as fearful of the future. I've stood taller, with a purpose that comes with age. But then again, I don't know if I fully understand more about the world, about myself or about the nature of that compassion that my world found when it needed it the most. Each day is another step. With my students, I think that there's an opportunity for my search to continue. Tomorrow will be September 12th. Everything changes, but nothing is ever truly lost.

The Lyceum in 4-112

It's the time to return to the books and the talk. School has begun and my classes seem to be filled to the rim. My AP US History class, all 29 of them, seem to be unafraid of the material and the challenge and seem to be rebuffing the rumors of the class being 'impossible'. Well, that's an accomplishment in itself. You guys rock! The Multicultural Studies class is also huge, but again, a great microcosm of society. Debate is also filled with students who seem, so far, really excited about the resolution and their potential to become a critical thinker and speaker. All in all, it looks like a good semester. I've begun to introduce some of the tech-geek components of the class with positive results. I am going to keep the practice of using email to communicate with students and parents. The forum is going to be a place where ideas get tossed around, battered, propped up again and then kicked again for good measure. I'm going to tone down the idea of posting lessons on the forum and transfer more of that to the wiki page this year. Wetpaint seems to be a more friendly host than pbwiki, but I'll have to see throughout the semester how it holds up to usability and security. Podcasts and my video library give me so many more options in the classroom, but I have to balance my use of video in the class with time constrictions and other content. This year is definitely a year of change. The presidential election is a necessary and powerful teaching opportunity. I am going to use the most controversial issues in my debate course, and build connections to both AP US History and Multicultural Studies. There's also a lot of change at the high school. We have a new superintendent, new MCAS challenges in science and history, new mandates for daily agendas and lesson plans, and lots of new staff. This is definitely a year to feel 'on my toes', but life without challenges is super boring. Today was a good day, but tomorrow is always better.