I actually don’t remember that much about 9/11, compared to many of my classmates. Memory just wasn’t a strong suit of my 8-year-old self growing up in Missouri, and it still isn’t today. Back then, there wasn’t a screen in every corner or pocket within the school, and my family wasn’t that interested in watching TV every day. I vaguely remember school was let out early and my mom was quiet and silenced the radio on the drive home. I kept doing what I did pretty much all the time: blend in and observe intently (even if I did forget soon after). While nothing memorable happened to me that day, my friends couldn’t say the same. Because when the principal and counselor pull 8-year-old you out of class to question you: “Do you know bin Laden?” you’ll remember.
I have always been a pacifist, the good friend that you wouldn’t want to bring to a fight. For the past couple of years, anger hasn’t been one of my go-to emotions. But this doesn’t mean that I am going to be able to solve conflict or display good judgement. Teachers need both of these, and a way to connect and empathize with all of their students. So should a teacher share in a student’s justified frustration? Or strive to rise above it with stoicism? Whichever they choose, they are teaching that to the student.
What should or shouldn’t have happened to my friend those many years ago is one of the situations that I can get angry over. And there is far too much going on now to remind me of these injustices. But the number of extreme cases can shift of the Overton Window to make us not notice the small differences. This is what worries me because these small differences that pop up are the most common reminders to my friends of how a (race, sex, etc.)–ism will continue to affect their lives. So I try to keep one eye on each target, one glaring down the big differences, and another on the lookout for the small ones.
I think you raise a good point by asking how teachers should handle these conflicts. I don’t think teachers should avoid discussing it at all, as that in its own way condones the biased actions. As for how to actually respond, it definitely depends on the teacher, the student, and the situation. Overall, teachers should make an effort to create an iclusive environment within their classrooms.
The situation my friend was in does anger me, which is why I would support a direct confrontation against their accusations. And it should have been discussed openly rather than behind closed doors. The other response method that I hinted at, the stoic and measured response, is one that I try to adopt in most cases. It has similarities to Street Epistemology and the Socratic Method which I think guides people towards a shared perspective rather than becoming defensive and escalating to an all-out war.
Hey Patrick,
You shared a very personal story in your post this week and I appreciate the bravery. I am horrified that anyone would traumatize a child like that. I’m so sorry that happened to your friend. You’re right, we have to be critical when we experience racist, sexist, xenophobic, etc. discourse. There’s no room in civil society for it. You’re asking a good question when you ask what we are modeling for our students through our behavior and words.
Thanks, Sara. I try to think of ways to approach those situations that lead to the greatest net benefit, which is not always the most obvious. The situation my friend was in was especially egregious, but the less outrageous offenses I wouldn’t try the same direct confrontation over. Someone may very well deserve a whistle-blow on their error, but this can lead to them doubling down or taking it as a personal attack, which escalates the argument. Guiding them slowly to an alternative perspective may feel we are treating the issue as if it isn’t important enough to escalate (when it is), but this way could lead to a changed mind in addition to a positive outcome.
That article you linked had a great quote by Frederick Douglass that reads as follows, “The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress.” I. can’t help but wonder at how the Overton Window has expanded an contracted over our lifetimes. It fascinates me on an academic level, but also frightens me on a personal one because each time it changes, those changes affect me and those I care about directly, and the more diverse me family and friend groups become, the more attention I have to give to even the slightest variations. I feel as you do, that I have to keep my eye on this target/window at all times, in order to do what I can to keep my friends and loved ones out of harm’s way.
I agree, it is frightening to imagine the consequences of the Overton Window. It also reminds me of the concept of moral relativism, which has been used to justify horrible acts like slavery or persecution as necessary for that time. I wonder if future generations will look on ours as despicable for the current social issues we deal with or the treatment of our planet and resources.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Its a good point you bring up about whatever path or decision we choose to take is what we are teaching our students. I suppose, we are always worried about the technical aspect or course objectives when we teach. We forget that we are always teaching by example and everything we do and how we act is providing an example for our students and everyone in general.
Thanks, Antonio. I struggle with choosing between the ‘activist’ approach and the ‘transcends’ approach because I know that my choice will effect my students. Maybe the situation at hand will make one stand out as more beneficial than the other, but I wish I could know which role to emulate before encountering that stress on my or my stuendent’s life.
I appreciate your call to not overlook the small things. For me, it’s the small things that affect my day-to-day feeling of inclusion. It’s the elderly manager at Chick-fil-A who passes flyers for to each table, engaging in friendly conversation, yet chooses to make my “hat” the topic of discussion when he gets to my table because “you don’t see too many of them around here.” Here is Christiansburg, VA. The only real chick-fil-a in a 15-mile radius of Virginia Tech—a cultural hub. To my two male colleagues, I shouldn’t have been upset—because he’s old and is from a place where he doesn’t see a lot of Muslims, in head scarves no less. To me, I just wanted to treated like the people at the other tables being told about the opportunity to dress like a cow and get free food.
Thanks for sharing those thoughts. I struggle a lot with thinking about how you should portray yourself as teacher and how much of your outside thoughts are appropriate to be bringing into the classroom. Especially after some events that transpired at the university last year, I wondered how vocal I would have been (if at all) if I was teaching here at the time. I personally don’t think that all of a teacher’s personal emotions and thoughts should be brought to the classroom. However, I do think that whether or not you speak about or even acknowledge different things going on in the world you are making a statement. To me, you can still be making a statement and be seeming to take a stance even if that was not your intention. And I think teachers run the risk of making some students not feel heard if we just ignore the outside world in the classroom. So I don’t think it is a negative thing to at least acknowledge what is going on and even create a safe space for dialogue if you believe that is necessary. Granted that can get tricky with controversial issues….
Thanks so much for sharing. Your post made me think about a quote by Desmond Tutu “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” I don’t mean that teachers always have the responsibility to discuss or even bring up these situations in the classroom, but I do agree with you that either way you are making a statement to your students. Silence on these issues within the classroom is an intentional choice. And if the situation was large and severe enough (granted where that line is could vary widely between individuals) I would be concerned about the message I was sending by being silent. But I definitely think it is hard to gauge when you should introduce a topic and how to appropriately discuss it in a safe classroom space.
How do the authors describe their memories of September 11 and its impact on their childhood, and how does this contrast with their friends’ experiences?