Teaching our Children the Important Stuff January 29, 2008
Posted by makingyourdashcount in civil disobedience, hampton, historically black colleges, martin luther king, segregation, Uncategorized.2 comments
After someone dies, it’s easy to want to hear the stories one more time. Withstanding that possibility, all one can do is piece together sketchy memories of once heard tales. This past Martin Luther King Day made me think of some of the stories my mom told of living in Hampton, Virginia as a young girl. My grandfather taught at the historically black institution, Hampton Institute, now Hampton Univeristy for several years, as did many Jewish educators who were not welcome in northern white schools. Although my mom did not attend high school in Hampton, she did grow up there, where she made some close friends.
My favorite story from Hampton had to do with mom convincing the manager of the movie theater she was black so that she could sit with her friends in the segregated theater. That just makes me laugh, as I look at the above picture, probably taken sometime between 1942-1945. I would love to know if these were the friends she went to the movies with. How she convinced ANYONE she was not lily white is beyond me.
My mom was always an advocate for equal rights: racial, gender, economic, religious, sexual orientation, age…. you name it. She even marched on Washington at the age of 74! It is obvious that her life was grounded in human rights and justice. Thank you, mom, for passing that onto me.
Science,Evolution,and Creationism January 8, 2008
Posted by makingyourdashcount in creationsim, evolution.6 comments
My daughters went through their high school biology classes at a time when Ohio teachers were required to present intelligent design as part of the science curricula. At the time I winced in the same way I do when getting an inoculation at the doctor’s office. I turned away and squirmed, making sure that I voted wisely for the next state school board opening. Then we discussed the whys and wherefores over the dinner table.
I am so glad to see the National Academy of Sciences come out with the linked publication entitled Science, Evolution and Creationism. I hope that people READ it, to be better informed on this subject. Religion and Science are not in antithesis to eachother; presenting creationism in the classroom teaches children it is an all or nothing relationship, which is wrong.
Just as science or math have no place in a comparative religion class, religious concepts have no place in the science classroom.
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/11876.html Committee on Revising Science and Creationism:A View from the National Academy of Sciences,National Academy of Sciences and Institute of Medicine of the National Academies
Making your Dash Count 
