“The words of James Weldon Johnson’s “Lift Every Voice and Sing” echoed down Drexel Ave on Chicago’s South Side the mild summer evening of September 8, 2015. “Life Every Voice and Sing” echoed down Drexel Ave.”
I urge you read the post from Jesse Turner in which he provides s a really important story on day 28 of the hunger strike to get the mayor’s attention to hear the community’s desire for a strong neighborhood school. When you read what they want, how can you not wonder: Why the *$%^*! not? I believe they could show the rest of us how to create a school that fulfills the dream and possibility of public education for our children.
1. Green Technology in school name and in school curriculum.
2. Global leadership/ world studies curriculum
3. Duane Turner as the school principal, who was selected by Coalition to Revitalize Dyett
4. Fully elected local school council in year 1.
5. Coalition to Revitalize Dyett represented on design/planning team with 6 members in prominent positions. Those who paid protesters to support closing Dyett cannot be on planning team.
6. The school must retain the name Walter H. Dyett.
7. Vertical curricular alignment with the 6 feeder schools identified in the Coalition proposal.
8. Community school (open till 8pm daily, with programs and resources for parents, students and the community)
They outline five principles that really could serve as a guide for so many schools. Again: Why the ^#%&$ can’t the Mayor let a community develop a school that comes from the neighborhood, from the history, the culture and leads students to go on to meaningful contributing lives?
“Children naturally want to love. But this society has inflicted so much hate on Black and Brown communities that the violence you see stems from that. It’s manufactured… Dyett was our school. It had been there for 30 years. There was so much love and memories there. They didn’t just close a school, the closed the doors on the future of our children. They killed so much memory .They can never pay us back for what they have done to our children.”—- Dyett hunger striker Irene Robinson
And so, what is going on here?