can a poem hurt?

On News and Notes last night, I heard more about the two (non-Union) teachers at a LA charter school that were fired for planning to have their students read a poem about Emmett Till at a Black History assembly.

Emmett Till, a 14 year-old who lived in Chicago, was brutally murdered in 1955 in Mississippi when he was spending the summer with his great-Uncle. A few days after his arrival in his great-uncle's town, he allegedly whistled at a white woman. The white men that later admitted to the murder were acquitted - the deliberations took about an hour including a break to "make it look good". The jury, of course, was 12 white men.

The article in the LA Times reports that the charter school wanted to portray positive images of black people to the students, not negative ones. They also stated that they didn't want the poem to be read because Emmett could be accused of sexual harassment.

When I was in high school, I was actively involved with a club called PRISM that educated about racism and prejudice through theater - poems, skits, spoken word, dance, etc. In addition to performances at our school, we also traveled to other local schools, including grammar schools. The charter school in LA serves students in grades K - 7. Now I did not grow up in LA, and unlike this charter school (which is 80% black), my high school was majority white in the suburbs of Chicago. I will also note that the town I grew up in is not well-known for tolerating difference. However, PRISM, in my biased opinion, made a difference in how kids looked at race, racism and other forms of intolerance and bigotry. In the town that prides itself on fundamental Christian values, we had kids come up to us after our shows that had been affected, and hopefully changed if even a little, by our performances. I know it changed me when I was 14 and got involved with the group. It changed everything for me. My activism started then and hasn't ended.

I don't know the content of the poem the students were to perform at the L.A. charter school but I do know you can't celebrate black history by only showing positive aspects. History is complicated and children deserve to know it, all of it. PRISM was led by the only African-American teacher at my high school... she fought tooth and nail (almost daily, but especially in February) to keep our club in existence at our school. I'm afraid it doesn't exist anymore because she's no longer there - I'm not sure but I think she got tired of fighting. I hope I never get that tired.

Update: I just checked my high school's website... there are two clubs focusing on multiculturalism... Mosaic was formed to promote tolerance and an environment free from harassment for students from all walks of life. The mission of Mosaic is to provide education, strive to eliminate stereotypes, build bridges, and create opportunities to foster new relationships and The Multicultural club's mission is to celebrate the diversity of human life and ethnicity. Things we work on are our Culture Seed Week, Black History Assembly, Culture Outings, International Fashion Show and much, much more.