"White Privilege; Black Anger" A Powerful Essay by Pamela Knight author of "Teaching While Black"

Let me be clear on something. I would not loot my city, HOWEVER, when people are just as upset over people looting in response to another unarmed black man being killed for no reason, as they are that a LIFE, not a store front, not a police station, not a Target, but a living, breathing human being was TAKEN, you are devaluing black life. You might THINK you are for equality, but subconsciously, you do not think we are your equals. 

 

White privilege is finding sympathy for white murderers who shoot up churches and schools because they were bullied. If you did not post about how disgusted you were at Dylan Roof or the countless white men who decided to take innocent lives, some even CHILDREN, because he was troubled, but you are disgusted and outraged at people vandalizing their OWN—not your—City, you do not value black life as much as white life. 

 

Let me also break something else down: this rioting is so much deeper than simply destroying one’s community. It speaks to a myriad of things and deserves more analysis and reflection than a simple tweet or post of disdain. And unfortunately, many will refuse to do that much because that would require you to care about black life as much as white life, and so this will probably fall on many deaf ears: 

 

1. Black people are angry. Rightfully angry. Just like the white male mass shooters are allowed to be angry, and the Amy Coopers of the world are allowed to be angry, for things that are INSIGNIFICANT: because they were told to put their dog on a leash, or because someone’s music was too loud, or because someone was publicly displaying joy in the face of their own misery, black people have and deserve to have a HEIGHTENED level of anger in this country, a country who has NEVER treated us fairly, who has had knees on our necks since our ancestors were kidnapped and brought here. We have CENTURIES of oppression that we are dealing with, in a nation considered the most powerful nation in the world. 

 

And YET and still, black people have not gone on a rampage killing white folk. Do you know what an Amy Cooper would do if she had a knee on her neck, or on the neck of her loved one? If she is angry enough to call 911 on a man for asking her to do what she is SUPPOSED to do, what kind of anger manifestation do you think would happen if her life was ACTUALLY in danger? 

 

 

White people have so many privileges, including the right to be angry and the right to express their anger, even when the levels are inappropriate. 

Black people are not appropriately expressing their anger, because none of you are dead. Black people have not gone on killing sprees killing white folk just because. White people have, killing black people praying and white children learning, this when they have no idea what oppression even feels like.

And when black people usually kill, it’s one of our own. Not random either. But the level of anger it takes to kill another human being manifests in our own personal interactions. We’ve expressed all of our anger, all of our hate bottled up inside us on another one of us. 

 

And instead of anyone even seeing the gravity of what that means, it’s used to display how violent we are. It’s used to look down on us. It’s used to justify the level of fear that you have of us. 

 

 

But we are not the violent ones. 

 

 

Our actual expression of anger doesn’t hold a candle to what is appropriate. We are inappropriately expressing our anger, because what would happen if we appropriately expressed our anger? 

 

Black people looting their own cities is no different than a person who has been abused, depressed or going through some form of mental breakdown choosing to cut themselves. Why does one do that? Of course, there’s self hate.  But guess what else there is? Beneath all the pain, there is compassion. Cutting yourself is releasing on your own body the rage and pain you feel without hurting another. And no matter what white people have done to us in this country, we always hurt ourselves before we ever THINK to hurt one of you. 

 

 

2. Now some might believe that looting, for many, is just an excuse to take things that don’t belong to them.

 

Again, this quick writing off without deeper analysis is simply unacceptable. 

Somehow Black people are still expected to have some sort of allegiance to this country. Poor black people, who are marginalized both for race and socio-economic status, feel more than any other group in this nation, that they’ve been cheated. Please do not rant to me about pulling one’s self up from one’s bootstraps if you do not know the history of oppression that goes deeper than slavery and Jim Crow. If you do not know about systems that have been put in place to keep us down AND to build you up. If you don’t know what redlining is, please have several seats. If you do not understand drug laws and incarceration laws that have continued to deliberately keep poor brown and black people down, please stay silent. Please do not tell me about your poor grandmothers who came here from another country and made a lane for themselves. No one will ever know the pain and suffering of the black man, woman, child, or family. No one. So you have not earned the right to critique us in any way. 

 

 

No one knows the fire that burns steadily within us. And pray you never will.

An Historian's Thoughts on the Uprisings in Our Cities

 

As an historian, I am am hardly surprised at the uprisings taking place in cities throughout the country

The murder of George Floyd pushed people filled with rage at their position in Trump's America over the edge.

It is not just that repeated murders of unarmed Black men and women, by police or self appointed security agents, had convinced many Black people that most whites signed off on policies that terrorized their communities, it is that they saw the rhetoric and policies of the Trump Administration as a daily assault on their safety and security.

In the minds of many people of color, it is wholly predictable-- and profoundly infuriating- that a country that could elect a race baiting demagogue like Donald Trump would sign off on the murder of unarmed Blacks, and never send those responsible to prison

Think about it: you are living in country where gun toting, Nazi and Confederate flag waving whites are cheered on by the President while unarmed Black men and women are shot down in the streets and their own homes, and where immigrant children of color are put in cages.

If you think that experience wasn't making people unbelievably angry, you are ignoring the lessons of history.

At some point, I suspected, that anger, which I know well because I feel it inside myself, was going to break loose. George Floyd's death may have been the spark, but there were a long chain of grievances which have come to the surface in its wake

I do not know where these uprisings are going, nor how they are going to end.

I do know they have been a long time coming.

Anybody really LISTENING to what their Black/LatinX friends, colleagues,neighbors and family members have been saying
over the last few years, in response to provocation after provocation, should hardly be surprised at what is taking place in the streets of our major cities.

An Open Letter to Governor Cuomo on Education Policy from Fordham Alum Carrie Anne Tocci

May 10, 2020

Dear Honorable Governor Cuomo:

I have respect for the Cuomo family.

My first full-time teaching job was at La Scuola D'Italia in Manhattan. Your mom visited once, and I found her to be eloquent when she spoke about the importance of education, and a one-on-one mentoring program in place in our state.  Your dad sat next to my mom when she was a member of a coalition of concerned moms who sought to raise the drinking age in our state in the '80s, following several tragic accidents.

I am an adoptee and in February, due to the amendment of  section 4138 of public health law you signed off on January 15, 2020, I received my original adoption papers--a landmark moment in my life. Personally, I appreciate your support with this issue, and leadership during this difficult time in our nation’s history, while we part ways on your recent comments in support of the Gates Foundation, and your wonderings about why the “old model” of education persists. 

As an educator, I do have some -- I hope -- useful feedback for you.

I've seen/heard other government representatives preach on education, following this up with the assignment of education leaders who have zero education experience/credibility. This suggests that anyone can teach or lead teachers who guide students.

I agree with you that we have been teaching 21st-Century learners with 20th-Century methods but we need to merge, not replace one for another but this must be done thoughtfully.  Educators are coming off the failed 2010 implementation  of the Common Core Standards which were implemented across many states in the United States, intending to fill in learning gaps with more rigorous curricula.  The CCSS, however, have not closed all performance gaps.

If we implement more platforms, interventions, curricula, will they be tested before implementation?  Will educators and students be consulted?

Training and experience with children, matters. Educators matter--our human touch in concert with education platforms, whether in person or virtual, is essential.  To better understand my learners with learning challenges, I need to be present to assess not just school work but social emotional well-being which may not be fully transparent through a screen.

 Maybe a hybrid model is next, but that would mean more companies and businesses need to have child care--more schools, too, for the teachers who have kids they can’t leave unattended at home.

I urge you to consult a random sample of New York State students especially adolescents asking them what does and doesn’t work for them with both environments: actual and virtual. Studies exist that explore student reading preferences. Though digital natives, some students today choose their reading platform, digital or print, based on the genre -- say, digital for news and print for fiction.

During this virtual learning time, I’ve had a few students ping me on Google hangouts, to speak one-on-one, and I've witnessed a few tears mixed with trying to keep up a brave face. Back at school, my students pop into my office throughout the day for a smile, encouragement, sometimes for a safe place to share and even cry when they are frustrated or overwhelmed. 

Technology has expanded my teaching options, but still I go back to your mom's visit to my first teaching post. Her presence, the fact she cared enough to drop by to our small school, made a big impression on me, more so than if she had greeted us from a screen. I am confident of that. Let’s not lose sight of the importance of seeing our students in person.

Thank you for listening.

Yours, sincerely,

Carrie Anne Tocci

Carrie Anne Tocci is a doctoral candidate in Fordham University’s Contemporary Learning and Interdisciplinary Research (CLAIR) program and has over 20 years of experience teaching adolescents and adults in public and private schools in urban, suburban, and international settin

"What Keeps Me Up At Night:" Reflections of A Fordham Senior on COVID-19's Impact

I am trying to deal with what is an incredibly difficult time for all of us. I am incredibly disappointed that we will not have a graduation ceremony (it is my sincere hope they will ACTUALLY hold the ceremony). As a first generation american and a first generation college student, that day was so much more than a ceremony. It is something that transcends my experience. It was for my family who in their totality and boundless sacrifice brought me to this once in a lifetime milestone. It felt like bringing generations of struggle with me across the stage. Aside from the uncertainty of graduating into an economy and society which we have no idea what will look like.

Not to mention (which I am sure you have many many thoughts on) what the pandemic says about our society which falls apart at the seams at the first hurdle that requires collectivism. One that uses prisoners for slave labor and continues to put them through greater inhumane challenges of fearing contamination in what are already inhumane sanitary conditions and severe overcrowding. One in which our differences seem to pull us even further apart when they should be bringing us together.

Prisoners, those in unstable homes, and who are dealing with abuse, scarcity, Illness and unemployment keep me up at night during this time.

Ashley Brito FCRH 2020

Proud to Be a New Yorker

As I woke up this morning, at a time when New York is experiencing the worst tragedy of the 21st Century, I want to express my gratitude to all the people risking their lives and safety to get us through this crisis; our doctors, nurses, and lab technicians; our EMT's and ambulance drivers, our police officers and fire fighters; our MTA workers who keep the buses and subways running, our teachers and principals who provide an educational lifeline to 1.1 million children; our grocery pharmacy and restaurant workers, truck drivers delivering food and supplies to homes,stores and hospitals; those running shelters and food banks; custodians and building service workers in apartment houses, office buildings, schools and universities. While the rest of us quarantine ourselves and shelter in place, they make sure the sick and dying are cared for and vital services continue.

As the majority of New Yorkers stay home to flatten the curve, we cannot forget those who go to work every day at great risk to themselves.

They represent the unconquerable spirit of this great city, a spirit which we saw after 9/11 and which we are seeing now. Because of them, because of all of us, New York will be back.

Feisty as ever. Arrogant as ever. Often hated. Never duplicated

My 10 Strategies for Getting Through This Pandemic

1. Get plenty of sleep every night and nap during the day

2. Take vitamins and supplements every morning to build up my immune system

3. Exercise every day, but never to the point of exhaustion

4. Never leave the house except to sit on the stoop or go for a walk in the park, and wear a mask whenever I am outside

5. Respond to every request for help from students and friends in a timely manner

6. Eat lots of comfort food as well as food that builds up my immune system

7 Since there are no sports to provide escape, read great mystery authors on Kindle and watch episodes of compelling series on TV with Liz every evening.

8. Wash my hands 20-40 times a day.

9. Enjoy bourbon, scotch, rum, vodka and wine whenever the spirit moves me

10 Put my heart and soul into providing my students with the best possible on line classes, and do so in a manner that reduces rather than adds to their stress

The Father O'Hare I Knew and Loved

During Father Joseph O’Hare’s Long and distinguished tenure as President of Fordham University, I was honored to count him as a friend and well as an academic leader. We didn’t agree on all Issues, and locked horns on a few, especially athletics, but in several key instances, Father O’Hare made decisions which showed his love of justice, and his concern for our community’s most vulnerable members , which earned him a special place in my heart and in the hearts of my Departmental colleagues

I am going to share two stories which reveal this aspect of Father O’Hare’s character. Since I have not seen these mentioned in other tributes to him, i think it is important that I share them, especially in a time when we are all being tested by the worst crisis of the 21st Century

The first occurred right after Father O’Hare’s inauguration. For several years, Urban Studies majors I had been working with at Fordham were trying to persuade the University to create a Community Service Program to encourage students to get involved in a Bronx community that was fighting an uphill battle against redlining, disinvestment, drug epidemics and the stigma the Bronx carried in public discourse. Less than a month after Father O’Hare took the helm of University leadership, he agreed to meet with me and my students about this issue. After listening for more than an hour to what they had to say, he agreed, on the spot to implement what they were calling for. Within a year, Fordham launched a fully funded Community Service Program which has evolved over time into one of the best in the nation. Father O’Hare’s empathy, vision and ability to take decisive action made this possible

The second instance took place nearly five years later. At that time, the University authorized a search for a scholar of African American religion who would be primarily housed in the Theology Department, but in which the faculty in African and African American Studies would have significant input. After a national search in which both Departments participated, the committee prepared to make an offer to a brilliant young scholar and teacher, Dr Mark Chapman. Unfortunately, at the last minute, the Theology faculty refused to make the offer. My Department chair, Dr Claude Mangum and I were so enraged by this they we actually arranged to move to another area university that was prepared to offer us tenure and relocate our African American and Urban Studies entities. But before we signed our contracts and left Fordham, we decided to meet with Father O’Hare to explain what we were about to do. As we described what had transpired during the search, Father O’Hare became increasingly dismayed and concluded the meeting by doing something for which Claude Mangum and I were forever grateful- he ordered the Vice President for Academic Affairs to create the tenure track line for Dr Chapman in African American Studies, not only allowing Claude and me to remain at Fordham, but instantly turning our Department into an Academic powerhouse.with a brilliant young religious leader on its faculty

I would not be here at Fordham, about to celebrate my 50th year of service at the school I love, had not Father O’Hare once again taken decisive action

Since that time, Father O’Hare has anyways held a special place in my heart, and in the hearts of everyone who who sees our Department as a valued part of the Fordham community

I mourn him. I miss him. And I try, every day, to keep his legacy alive