A Bold, and Un-hidden New Strategy
I came across a 2008 Report on mayoral control vs. elected school boards. For me, the problem is always the funding that goes into these "studies" because they sway outcomes by shaping opinion and thus, policy.
Being out-spent and out-thunk by the privateers and foundations like Broad, Annenburg and the like, we have to be expertly smart in crafting a remedy to losing this uphill struggle for control of our public education system. We should not ignore opportunities to counter the ideas of so-called think-tanks (backed by questionable dollars), whose social scientists devise junk theorizing without any true input from the masses.
Case in point, this report:
In planning a strategy to win back any degree of true, democratic Public Education, I think we need to be able to identify the masterful enemy pulling the strings behind the scenes. Something has to be done beyond protesting and rallying against their front men who so easily deflect and dismiss whatever we say and do.
IMHO it is imperative to know who the enemy of our children and communities really are, and I think the American Enterprise Institute is a big and very unnoticed one. Their board of directors just might have a hell of a lot of reason to invest in maintaining the hierarchy of White, supremacist power in the ever-increasing Browning of this country.
Have a look at their next event regarding education and tell me if I'm wrong in my assumptions about them:
While brilliant (and valiant in their own ways), Diane Ravitch and Debbie Meir can not, and do not, organically speak for us-- yet these esteemed and very privileged White women's voices seem to be the only ones loud enough to be heard in important power circles. Though they are not well listened to in terms of changing policy, they are still attention getting and obviously, media worthy.
What troubles me is, Why aren't the scholars from our own community getting the same attention? Is some of that our fault for not lauding them enough? Could it be that they haven't stepped to match the outspokenness and vigor of the two "D's" in part because they simply haven't been asked?
In thinking about how we, the Black/Brown and non-racist Anglo community of activists, can ever affect the enemy power of faceless think-tanks and the money-men behind them, I wonder if any of the allies would be interested in fleshing out the sketch below of a strategy to first identify, then contact, and then AMPLIFY our voices in concert with those who have earned educational distinction and are respected by US as our community's scholars? (Of course, we have to be certain that they agree with our education agenda for public schooling and have a stake in the outcomes for poor children of color, both in NYC and across the country).
Here's the sketch:
Our Over-Arching Goal:
Excellent, Equitable, Democratic, Public Education for ALL
The Mission:
Affect the Status Quo Growth / Acceptance of Privatization as the Only Way to Effectively Educate & Run Schools
The Objective #1:
Get heard, and written about enough to cause alarm in the chambers of the power elite
Objective #2:
Provide a chorus of intellectual voices of color to the standard orchestra of Anglo Edu-wonks
Tactic:
Using the strength of the coalition of NYC Education Allies that has recently be solidified, we need to research, unanimously select and then divvy up the work of contacting these scholars who's educational muscle and notoriety can be used to make headway in getting our concerns-- and demand for policy changes-- known.
A distinguished professor at Seton Hall University, Dr. Amadou Jacky Kaba did a good deal of our research by compiling an important demographic breakdown of Black American scholars in his paper;
"Demographics and Profile: The Most Cited Black Scholars in the Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities." http://www.jpanafrican.com/docs/vol3no2/3.2Demographics.pdf
Dr. Kaba's findings are valued but certainly there are other scholars to consider in addition to those on his list. Some examples are Dr. Adelaide Sanford, Dr. Jeffries, Dr. Joy DeLeary, Dr. Melissa-Harris Perry, etc.
Most of all, we need to rrecognize our own Black/Latino (progressive) intellects and their scholarly work. Added to our protest actions, that recognition and an outreach to our own scholars will demonstrate to our community— and beyond, that we have come together with an in-depth strategic plan to reject the "Duncan/Obama/Bloomberg" model of current education reform.
I'm quoting something I read once that made a whole of sense:
"We need more than one or two, three or four voices to speak for our million children. We need to organize a million voices!"
Please comment below and/or let us know if you think this is a venture worthy of your time and input to organize.
If so, send an email to The Mothers' Agenda NY at: themanyrules@gmail.com
and let's get started.
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