Call to Action

Every single teacher that I know (and I know many, including my mother) believes that Bush's 2001 No Child Left Behind policy, with its emphasis on rote learning, standardized testing, and unbelievable funding problems, is taking education in the wrong direction and ultimately hurting American children. Putting aside the failings of NCLB itself, it's pretty transparent that the idea behind this high profile campaign, that of leaving no children behind, is at odds with the Bush administration's ongoing dismantling of social programs whose primary beneficiaries are poor families with historically "left behind" children, in favor of unprecedented funding for the war/defense coupled with tax cuts for the wealthy.

Where's the outrage? Coverage of Bush's 2007 budget, which was released on the 7th, was dwarfed in comparison to the sensational news of Cheney's hunting snafu a week later. Thank god for NPR. You can read a succinct and revealing analysis of the budget here.

Of course, this didn't start with Bush. In the last few chapters of her 2001 book Misconceptions, Naomi Wolf does a much better job than I could ever do of detailing the ways in which American society, for all its showboating, is fundamentally unfriendly toward children, parents, and families.

And with our exorbitant defense spending and economic downturn, things since 2001 have gotten much worse for American children. This is palpable and observable locally. Buffalo has instituted a stunning number of library closings and cutbacks. This affects all children, but is an absolute crisis for poor children who depend on neighborhood libraries for computer access and a quiet and safe place to meet or study.

This morning's local paper has an article (here) about the sad state of subsidies in Monroe County for working parents who need assistance paying the childcare bill.

This situation is desperate, and things need to change. You can't complain if you don't do something. An easy way to find out how to make a difference is by visiting MoveOn's Campaigns page (here). Sign some petitions. Write a letter to the editor of your local paper. Find out about local activist groups and gatherings.

I'll get off my soapbox now.