thyme4change
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 26, 2010 13:54:08 GMT -5
Posts: 40,372
|
Post by thyme4change on Feb 5, 2022 15:37:41 GMT -5
I don't know your grading systems.... and I haven't seen this book..... but we wouldn't be showing dead bodies to children. unless it was part of an exam group in history ages (14-16) and (16-18) We do cover the Holocaust for the younger ones for - Citizenship, English and History There are general outlines of what happened.... Interviews with survivors and educationally approved Historians. Anne Frank. .....We give them a card with a child victim's name/age on it... and ask then to imagine what that child's life would be like, there is Holocaust Memorial Day and workshops to go with it. So yes..... we cover it in an age appropriate way. 8th grade is ~13/14 years old. This also isn't a photo of a dead body. It is a drawing of a mouse/woman.
|
|
weltschmerz
Community Leader
Joined: Jul 25, 2011 13:37:39 GMT -5
Posts: 38,962
|
Post by weltschmerz on Feb 5, 2022 17:21:21 GMT -5
I don't know your grading systems.... and I haven't seen this book..... but we wouldn't be showing dead bodies to children.
unless it was part of an exam group in history ages (14-16) and (16-18) We do cover the Holocaust for the younger ones for - Citizenship, English and History There are general outlines of what happened.... Interviews with survivors and educationally approved Historians. Anne Frank. .....We give them a card with a child victim's name/age on it... and ask then to imagine what that child's life would be like, there is Holocaust Memorial Day and workshops to go with it. So yes..... we cover it in an age appropriate way. No? Here's Bambi's dead mother.
|
|
Opti
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 10:45:38 GMT -5
Posts: 39,680
Location: New Jersey
Mini-Profile Name Color: c28523
Mini-Profile Text Color: 990033
Member is Online
|
Post by Opti on Feb 5, 2022 17:38:50 GMT -5
Americans SHOULD feel bad about PARTS of their past. that is what history is about. it is ALSO about the good things. and yes, we can teach those side by side. because we are not perfect. and we never will be. and that is ok, if we recognize it, and CONSTANTLY try to improve through memory and refinement. Teaching the truth about history is simply telling the truth. People with integrity tell the truth even when it’s not pretty. Cowards hide behind lies, including lies of omission. History teaches us that human beings can and will do despicable things to other human beings, and what can happen when good people say and do nothing. History also teaches us that human beings can come together and accomplish awe inspiring good things, and that there have always been good souls brave enough to fight for others that are being terrorized, even if their fight was “just” hiding them in their homes to try to help them stay alive and get somewhere safer. Finding out your (general you) great grandfather wasn’t a good man doesn’t say anything about what kind of person you are, and it doesn’t mean you should carry guilt or shame…..unless you’re just like him and ok with that. Maybe that’s why they don’t want the truth taught, so people won’t recognize the same kind of evil in them. When DS moved to Texas, he was shocked and appalled the first time he heard somebody say that slaves came to America for job opportunities. Unfortunately, the first time was not the last time. It boggles my mind that adults would even let that come out of their mouth, to a Black man at that. Neither of us had ever heard anyone say something like that. Is that what they teach in some places? Wow. Initially I remember being taught that some African tribes sold people from other defeated tribes to get their land and stuff. Of course, peeps like Columbus and others just saw others as free catchable labor.
|
|
Opti
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 10:45:38 GMT -5
Posts: 39,680
Location: New Jersey
Mini-Profile Name Color: c28523
Mini-Profile Text Color: 990033
Member is Online
|
Post by Opti on Feb 5, 2022 17:51:37 GMT -5
I don't know your grading systems.... and I haven't seen this book..... but we wouldn't be showing dead bodies to children.
unless it was part of an exam group in history ages (14-16) and (16-18) We do cover the Holocaust for the younger ones for - Citizenship, English and History There are general outlines of what happened.... Interviews with survivors and educationally approved Historians. Anne Frank. .....We give them a card with a child victim's name/age on it... and ask then to imagine what that child's life would be like, there is Holocaust Memorial Day and workshops to go with it. So yes..... we cover it in an age appropriate way. No? Here's Bambi's dead mother. Age appropriate is in the eye of the beholder. I understand not wanting to scare kids when very young if you don't have to. However, it also leads to lack of awareness and danger for some. I think I saw Bambi at age four. I was deeply affected. Meanwhile, in parts of the US kids die of starvation or beating b4 age 5 way too often. I'm not from the UK, not have I gone to school there, but I am not sure what is appropriate about imagining the life of some random child that died in the Holocaust. Imagining Ann Frank's life was bad enough in school TYVM.
|
|
Opti
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 10:45:38 GMT -5
Posts: 39,680
Location: New Jersey
Mini-Profile Name Color: c28523
Mini-Profile Text Color: 990033
Member is Online
|
Post by Opti on Feb 5, 2022 18:00:41 GMT -5
Eighth grade IS high school in Canada. Kids in high school know all about nudity, swearing and sex. When I first heard about this, I thought it was about 3rd or 4th grade. But EIGHTH? C'mon! the US is oddly puritanical. I think we get it more from the UK than "religion" per se. Think of the difference as to how the English treat sex versus the Dutch. (At least in the last few decades.) Germany. Italy, France, etc.
|
|
weltschmerz
Community Leader
Joined: Jul 25, 2011 13:37:39 GMT -5
Posts: 38,962
|
Post by weltschmerz on Feb 5, 2022 19:34:38 GMT -5
No? Here's Bambi's dead mother. Age appropriate is in the eye of the beholder. I understand not wanting to scare kids when very young if you don't have to. However, it also leads to lack of awareness and danger for some. I think I saw Bambi at age four. I was deeply affected. Meanwhile, in parts of the US kids die of starvation or beating b4 age 5 way too often. I'm not from the UK, not have I gone to school there, but I am not sure what is appropriate about imagining the life of some random child that died in the Holocaust. Imagining Ann Frank's life was bad enough in school TYVM. You DO understand that Maus is a graphic novel (comic book) depicting mice, right? Are you saying that for 13-14 year olds, it's not age-appropriate? I also saw Bambi when I was little. It also affected me, and made me cry. That being said, we're talking about high school here. (in Canada anyway). Would watching Bambi and seeing the dead mother in the movie traumatize these high school kids?
|
|
billisonboard
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 22:45:44 GMT -5
Posts: 37,433
Member is Online
|
Post by billisonboard on Feb 5, 2022 21:07:05 GMT -5
Age appropriate is in the eye of the beholder. I understand not wanting to scare kids when very young if you don't have to. However, it also leads to lack of awareness and danger for some. I think I saw Bambi at age four. I was deeply affected. Meanwhile, in parts of the US kids die of starvation or beating b4 age 5 way too often. I'm not from the UK, not have I gone to school there, but I am not sure what is appropriate about imagining the life of some random child that died in the Holocaust. Imagining Ann Frank's life was bad enough in school TYVM. You DO understand that Mous is a graphic novel (comic book) depicting mice, right? Are you saying that for 13-14 year olds, it's not age-appropriate? I also saw Bambi when I was little. It also affected me, and made me cry. That being said, we're talking about high school here. (in Canada anyway). Would watching Bambi and seeing the dead mother in the movie traumatize these high school kids? Considering the topic matter, I think the fact Maus "is a graphic novel (comic book) depicting mice" makes it less appropriate for 13/14 year olds.
|
|
Opti
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 10:45:38 GMT -5
Posts: 39,680
Location: New Jersey
Mini-Profile Name Color: c28523
Mini-Profile Text Color: 990033
Member is Online
|
Post by Opti on Feb 5, 2022 21:28:13 GMT -5
You DO understand that Mous is a graphic novel (comic book) depicting mice, right? Are you saying that for 13-14 year olds, it's not age-appropriate? I also saw Bambi when I was little. It also affected me, and made me cry. That being said, we're talking about high school here. (in Canada anyway). Would watching Bambi and seeing the dead mother in the movie traumatize these high school kids? Considering the topic matter, I think the fact Maus "is a graphic novel (comic book) depicting mice" makes it less appropriate for 13/14 year olds. Why? To me, graphic novel to comic book is like a book compared to serial stories (not even short stories). Bills, have you read any contemporary graphic novels?
|
|
billisonboard
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 22:45:44 GMT -5
Posts: 37,433
Member is Online
|
Post by billisonboard on Feb 5, 2022 21:47:15 GMT -5
Considering the topic matter, I think the fact Maus "is a graphic novel (comic book) depicting mice" makes it less appropriate for 13/14 year olds. Why? To me, graphic novel to comic book is like a book compared to serial stories (not even short stories). Bills, have you read any contemporary graphic novels? No. But I work with 8th graders.
|
|
Opti
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 10:45:38 GMT -5
Posts: 39,680
Location: New Jersey
Mini-Profile Name Color: c28523
Mini-Profile Text Color: 990033
Member is Online
|
Post by Opti on Feb 5, 2022 22:28:00 GMT -5
Why? To me, graphic novel to comic book is like a book compared to serial stories (not even short stories). Bills, have you read any contemporary graphic novels? No. But I work with 8th graders. Graphic novels and literature are such that it is rare that anyone really understands all of it at any age. I admit I have not read Maus, but I have read some dramatic contemporary graphic novels. Do you agree with the banning? Eight graders here and most places in the US have seen much more graphic realistic violence than I did at their age. Atrocities happen to kids much younger than eight grade in Africa, Russia, India, and here too at times. Shouldn't they know that?
|
|
billisonboard
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 22:45:44 GMT -5
Posts: 37,433
Member is Online
|
Post by billisonboard on Feb 5, 2022 23:08:29 GMT -5
No. But I work with 8th graders. Graphic novels and literature are such that it is rare that anyone really understands all of it at any age. I admit I have not read Maus, but I have read some dramatic contemporary graphic novels. Do you agree with the banning? Eight graders here and most places in the US have seen much more graphic realistic violence than I did at their age. Atrocities happen to kids much younger than eight grade in Africa, Russia, India, and here too at times. Shouldn't they know that? I think that teaching both the content and style of Maus at a high school junior/senior level should be done. I support teaching an honest current events curriculum at the 8th grade level.
|
|
Opti
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 10:45:38 GMT -5
Posts: 39,680
Location: New Jersey
Mini-Profile Name Color: c28523
Mini-Profile Text Color: 990033
Member is Online
|
Post by Opti on Feb 5, 2022 23:26:36 GMT -5
Graphic novels and literature are such that it is rare that anyone really understands all of it at any age. I admit I have not read Maus, but I have read some dramatic contemporary graphic novels. Do you agree with the banning? Eight graders here and most places in the US have seen much more graphic realistic violence than I did at their age. Atrocities happen to kids much younger than eight grade in Africa, Russia, India, and here too at times. Shouldn't they know that? I think that teaching both the content and style of Maus at a high school junior/senior level should be done. I support teaching an honest current events curriculum at the 8th grade level. Not sure I agree. I was not a history person. I'm not even sure what I took in HS that counted for history, except one course. If it waits until HS, most kids will not be exposed to it.
|
|
billisonboard
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 22:45:44 GMT -5
Posts: 37,433
Member is Online
|
Post by billisonboard on Feb 5, 2022 23:39:20 GMT -5
I think that teaching both the content and style of Maus at a high school junior/senior level should be done. I support teaching an honest current events curriculum at the 8th grade level. Not sure I agree. I was not a history person. I'm not even sure what I took in HS that counted for history, except one course. If it waits until HS, most kids will not be exposed to it. Teach it as part of the English curriculum.
|
|
Opti
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 10:45:38 GMT -5
Posts: 39,680
Location: New Jersey
Mini-Profile Name Color: c28523
Mini-Profile Text Color: 990033
Member is Online
|
Post by Opti on Feb 6, 2022 0:46:33 GMT -5
Not sure I agree. I was not a history person. I'm not even sure what I took in HS that counted for history, except one course. If it waits until HS, most kids will not be exposed to it. Teach it as part of the English curriculum. Where? How? www.varsitytutors.com/blog/what+are+the+high+school+english+coursesThroughout your high school career, you are expected to fulfill a variety of English course requirements. Some may help you satisfy requirements at the college level, some will assist you in exploring creative writing, and some may simply help you develop the necessary skills to write successfully in the workplace.
Freshman Language Arts
During your ninth grade year, you will likely take a class referred to as Language Arts. The scope of this class is typically broad, designed to introduce young learners to the reading, writing, and critical thinking skills that will be necessary later in life.
This course (and courses like these) will allow you to practice your writing skills in a variety of essays, explore a range of literary genres, and examine texts at a fairly granular level. You’ll look at plot, voice, tone, characters, and so on.
Sophomore Language Arts
In a sophomore Language Arts class, you can expect to build upon the skills you learned in ninth grade. You’ll likely focus a little more on the process of revision, employing practices like outlining and writing drafts as you develop your writing.
You may also delve a little deeper into the texts you’re reading, which will span even more literary genres. Expect to analyze theme, symbolism, imagery, etc.
American Literature
Your junior year of English coursework may focus on American Literature, though you’ll continue to build upon the reading and writing skills you focused on during your freshman and sophomore years as well.
In terms of writing, expect to begin researching and incorporating outside sources into your essays. You’ll be using context in your exploration of American Literature, too — historical context, point of view, time period, and more.
|
|
billisonboard
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 22:45:44 GMT -5
Posts: 37,433
Member is Online
|
Post by billisonboard on Feb 6, 2022 0:50:51 GMT -5
Teach it as part of the English curriculum. Where? How? www.varsitytutors.com/blog/what+are+the+high+school+english+coursesThroughout your high school career, you are expected to fulfill a variety of English course requirements. Some may help you satisfy requirements at the college level, some will assist you in exploring creative writing, and some may simply help you develop the necessary skills to write successfully in the workplace.
Freshman Language Arts
During your ninth grade year, you will likely take a class referred to as Language Arts. The scope of this class is typically broad, designed to introduce young learners to the reading, writing, and critical thinking skills that will be necessary later in life.
This course (and courses like these) will allow you to practice your writing skills in a variety of essays, explore a range of literary genres, and examine texts at a fairly granular level. You’ll look at plot, voice, tone, characters, and so on.
Sophomore Language Arts
In a sophomore Language Arts class, you can expect to build upon the skills you learned in ninth grade. You’ll likely focus a little more on the process of revision, employing practices like outlining and writing drafts as you develop your writing.
You may also delve a little deeper into the texts you’re reading, which will span even more literary genres. Expect to analyze theme, symbolism, imagery, etc.
American Literature
Your junior year of English coursework may focus on American Literature, though you’ll continue to build upon the reading and writing skills you focused on during your freshman and sophomore years as well.
In terms of writing, expect to begin researching and incorporating outside sources into your essays. You’ll be using context in your exploration of American Literature, too — historical context, point of view, time period, and more.
Junior year sounds good.
|
|
Opti
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 10:45:38 GMT -5
Posts: 39,680
Location: New Jersey
Mini-Profile Name Color: c28523
Mini-Profile Text Color: 990033
Member is Online
|
Post by Opti on Feb 6, 2022 0:55:48 GMT -5
|
|
Spellbound454
Senior Member
"In the end, we remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends"
Joined: Sept 9, 2011 17:28:42 GMT -5
Posts: 3,987
|
Post by Spellbound454 on Feb 7, 2022 17:35:17 GMT -5
It brings it home to the kids...... Ie to think about real children, whose lives ended way too early.... They carry the name cards in their pockets during the days that we covering Holocaust memorial. Not all Schools do it like that but we do.
We dont have Maus on the curriculum, thats not to say it isn't in the Library
and I thought you were talking about real dead bodies not cartoon mice.
and how is that?..... (out of curiosity)
Sex and nudity we are pretty easy about..... violence we are not so much.
|
|
teen persuasion
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 21:58:49 GMT -5
Posts: 4,037
|
Post by teen persuasion on Feb 7, 2022 23:27:56 GMT -5
A week ago I picked up Maus vol 1 at work, and read thru it in slow periods. It's very good.
It's told in a story-within-a-story style. The author is gradually interviewing his father about his father's experiences during the Holocaust, but it's filled with little asides of his elderly father's current daily frustrations and squabbles with his second wife, growing old, father/son issues. He starts telling the story before things got bad, and goes along chronologically, so you see things deteriorating. You get a great sense of the escalation of atrocities and danger - how ordinary people can do things to friends/neighbors/relatives to save themselves. The tension of staying put, hidden and low profile vs taking risks to escape somewhere that MIGHT be better. The whole frog in boiling water thing.
The characters are anthropomorphic, with animal heads. The Jews are mice, the Germans are cats, and the Poles are pigs (they are in Poland). When they are trying to disguise themselves, they have masks on, say mice wearing pig masks.
The naked suicide picture was actually bizarre - it was an aside, in a different style. It was an earlier GN by the author, working thru his sense of loss when his mother committed suicide; his father had suddenly decided to read that GN years later, after refusing to when Art first tried to show him. More father/son/new wife drama. They were looking for mom's diaries, for first person accounts from her POV. Turns out dad burned them in grief. Whole few pages could be omitted from lessons about the Holocaust, more about long term generational effects on families. The naked image itself is not very notable - if I hadn't been looking for it I might not have even noticed it - clawfoot tub with person in it, as seen from behind the person, and a bit above them. So you see back of head, shoulders, bit of breasts above water.
I haven't gotten a chance to read vol 2 yet. Intended to try today (missed a shift to snow day last week), but the media attention has others interested, too - both volumes were going out in the delivery bag for holds.
Also interesting to note that money and influence only helped for so long. Art's mother's family was wealthy, her father a successful business owner, and he set Art's father up in business, too. The development of a black market to access food was well described.
|
|
Tennesseer
Member Emeritus
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 21:58:42 GMT -5
Posts: 63,354
|
Post by Tennesseer on Feb 10, 2022 19:05:53 GMT -5
Another southern Republican state. Somewhat same issues. West Virginia high school students stage a walkout after they say they were forced to attend a Christian revival assemblySamuel Felinton shuffled into his high school auditorium last week for what his teacher told him was a mandatory assembly. Little did he know, the guest speaker was an evangelical preacher holding a Christian revival assembly. Despite asking, Felinton, who is Jewish, says he wasn't allowed to be excused from it. On February 2, students involved in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, a non-profit Christian sports ministry, conducted an assembly during a non-instructional homeroom period at Huntington High School in Huntington, West Virginia, Cabell County Schools spokesperson Jedd Flowers told CNN in a statement. During the meeting, Felinton says Nik Walker, an evangelical preacher, instructed the auditorium to close their eyes, raise their arms in prayer to give their lives over to Jesus for purpose and salvation. Those who didn't follow the Bible, he said, would go to hell when they died. "There were moments where most of the people, or most of the kids and administrators are standing up putting their hands up and praying," Felinton said. "And me and this little group of people did nothing. I felt we were definitely stared at and felt like the minority there too." Walker, a traveling evangelist minister based in Cleveland, Tennessee, has been visiting with other schools in the area, according to his social media. "We just got back from Boyd County High School and Huntington High School where right at 50 students gave their lives to Jesus at their voluntary club meetings!," he wrote on Feb. 2. "I expect to see these students and many others TONIGHT for the final service of the week at Christ Temple Church! Don't miss this incredible night of revival." CNN has made several attempts to reach Nik Walker but has not heard back. In a statement to CNN affiliate WCHS, Walker said: "My vision as a minister, whether in a church or a school, is to bring hope to a generation. So many things have been taken from our young people and the people of West Virginia, and it creates hopelessness." Walker also told WCHS in a statement that his events are always voluntary and student-led. Schools says attendance was voluntary, students say otherwise On the day of the assembly, Felinton asked his teacher for permission to leave but says he was denied that opportunity. "Student attendance was voluntary, and there was a signup process in place prior to the event so teachers would know what students had requested to attend," said Flowers, the Cabell County Schools spokesperson. Felinton, however, says his teacher left he and his peers no choice about attending and offered no details on what the assembly was about prior to them walking into the auditorium. "Two teachers mistakenly took their entire class to the assembly," Flowers said. "Those teachers have been corrected and the district does not anticipate a similar issue in the future." Flowers would not comment on what, if any, disciplinary action has been taken against the two teachers, how many students attended the assembly. He did not elaborate on what the school and district is doing to ensure an incident like this doesn't happen again. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes told CNN in a statement they welcome all to participate in FCA activities and events. "One way that FCA shows all individuals respect is by welcoming all people to FCA events on a voluntary basis. Coaches, athletes and students are free to choose or deny participation in any FCA event," the organization said. Bethany Felinton, Samuel's mom, told CNN she was shocked when he texted her last week about the assembly. "And then that shock turned into anger," she said. "Because we send our children to Cabell County Schools, and we trust them and then this happens and my child's asked not to be part of it, and was still forced to do that." Cameron Mays also attended the assembly and texted his dad Herman from the event. He was confused about the legality of holding a religious presentation at the school. "Stan Lee and Spider-Man wrote this thing that you might think is very silly today but it's so true...school districts have great power, and with that great power comes great responsibility and they have constitutional responsibilities to protect the rights of all their students, not just some that have beliefs that they happen to agree with," Herman told CNN. Herman says he wrote a letter to Huntington High School's principal to express his concern, but he isn't satisfied with the response he received. "There has been virtually no information regarding whatever investigation they ostensibly said they were going to do," Herman said. "In fact, several days later other parents received an almost identical email." 'A blatant violation of our rights' Max Nibert, a senior at Huntington High School, didn't attend the assembly but felt a collective sentiment with his peers who were made uncomfortable by it. He organized a walkout Wednesday in an attempt to get administrators to hear students' concerns. "These are kids that don't feel comfortable attending this, you know, kids that might be part of the LGBTQ community, or might be non- Christian or non religious as a whole, and they were made to go," he said. "And I, personally, as a student...it's not even about that, but as a non-Christian person myself, that's just unacceptable. It's a blatant violation of our rights as of the Establishment clause of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution," he said, referring to the clause that prohibits the government from "establishing" a religion. American Civil Liberties Union West Virginia said they are monitoring the situation at Huntington High School. "What happened at Huntington High School was a very clear violation of both the United States and the West Virginia constitutions," ACLU West Virginia Legal Director Loree Stark told CNN in a statement. "Unfortunately, it was far from a one-off incident. This is a systemic issue in West Virginia, where proselytizing often occurs in public schools." "The Huntington High administration must understand that students being compelled to attend is not the only issue," the wrote. "This Christian revival should not have occurred on public school grounds during school hours in the first place." "The reason we walked out in the first place was because the response from the board was entirely dissatisfactory," Nibert said. "That is just not good enough for the magnitude of what happened and the impact, to be as substantial as it was, serious actions need to be taken to ensure that this doesn't happen again." West Virginia high school students stage a walkout after they say they were forced to attend a Christian revival assembly
|
|
teen persuasion
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 21:58:49 GMT -5
Posts: 4,037
|
Post by teen persuasion on Feb 12, 2022 22:21:22 GMT -5
|
|
djAdvocate
Member Emeritus
only posting when the mood strikes me.
Joined: Jun 21, 2011 12:33:54 GMT -5
Posts: 75,040
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"000307"}
|
Post by djAdvocate on Feb 13, 2022 0:28:19 GMT -5
Another southern Republican state. Somewhat same issues. West Virginia high school students stage a walkout after they say they were forced to attend a Christian revival assemblySamuel Felinton shuffled into his high school auditorium last week for what his teacher told him was a mandatory assembly. Little did he know, the guest speaker was an evangelical preacher holding a Christian revival assembly. Despite asking, Felinton, who is Jewish, says he wasn't allowed to be excused from it. On February 2, students involved in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, a non-profit Christian sports ministry, conducted an assembly during a non-instructional homeroom period at Huntington High School in Huntington, West Virginia, Cabell County Schools spokesperson Jedd Flowers told CNN in a statement. During the meeting, Felinton says Nik Walker, an evangelical preacher, instructed the auditorium to close their eyes, raise their arms in prayer to give their lives over to Jesus for purpose and salvation. Those who didn't follow the Bible, he said, would go to hell when they died. "There were moments where most of the people, or most of the kids and administrators are standing up putting their hands up and praying," Felinton said. "And me and this little group of people did nothing. I felt we were definitely stared at and felt like the minority there too." Walker, a traveling evangelist minister based in Cleveland, Tennessee, has been visiting with other schools in the area, according to his social media. "We just got back from Boyd County High School and Huntington High School where right at 50 students gave their lives to Jesus at their voluntary club meetings!," he wrote on Feb. 2. "I expect to see these students and many others TONIGHT for the final service of the week at Christ Temple Church! Don't miss this incredible night of revival." CNN has made several attempts to reach Nik Walker but has not heard back. In a statement to CNN affiliate WCHS, Walker said: "My vision as a minister, whether in a church or a school, is to bring hope to a generation. So many things have been taken from our young people and the people of West Virginia, and it creates hopelessness." Walker also told WCHS in a statement that his events are always voluntary and student-led. Schools says attendance was voluntary, students say otherwise On the day of the assembly, Felinton asked his teacher for permission to leave but says he was denied that opportunity. "Student attendance was voluntary, and there was a signup process in place prior to the event so teachers would know what students had requested to attend," said Flowers, the Cabell County Schools spokesperson. Felinton, however, says his teacher left he and his peers no choice about attending and offered no details on what the assembly was about prior to them walking into the auditorium. "Two teachers mistakenly took their entire class to the assembly," Flowers said. "Those teachers have been corrected and the district does not anticipate a similar issue in the future." Flowers would not comment on what, if any, disciplinary action has been taken against the two teachers, how many students attended the assembly. He did not elaborate on what the school and district is doing to ensure an incident like this doesn't happen again. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes told CNN in a statement they welcome all to participate in FCA activities and events. "One way that FCA shows all individuals respect is by welcoming all people to FCA events on a voluntary basis. Coaches, athletes and students are free to choose or deny participation in any FCA event," the organization said. Bethany Felinton, Samuel's mom, told CNN she was shocked when he texted her last week about the assembly. "And then that shock turned into anger," she said. "Because we send our children to Cabell County Schools, and we trust them and then this happens and my child's asked not to be part of it, and was still forced to do that." Cameron Mays also attended the assembly and texted his dad Herman from the event. He was confused about the legality of holding a religious presentation at the school. "Stan Lee and Spider-Man wrote this thing that you might think is very silly today but it's so true...school districts have great power, and with that great power comes great responsibility and they have constitutional responsibilities to protect the rights of all their students, not just some that have beliefs that they happen to agree with," Herman told CNN. Herman says he wrote a letter to Huntington High School's principal to express his concern, but he isn't satisfied with the response he received. "There has been virtually no information regarding whatever investigation they ostensibly said they were going to do," Herman said. "In fact, several days later other parents received an almost identical email." 'A blatant violation of our rights' Max Nibert, a senior at Huntington High School, didn't attend the assembly but felt a collective sentiment with his peers who were made uncomfortable by it. He organized a walkout Wednesday in an attempt to get administrators to hear students' concerns. "These are kids that don't feel comfortable attending this, you know, kids that might be part of the LGBTQ community, or might be non- Christian or non religious as a whole, and they were made to go," he said. "And I, personally, as a student...it's not even about that, but as a non-Christian person myself, that's just unacceptable. It's a blatant violation of our rights as of the Establishment clause of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution," he said, referring to the clause that prohibits the government from "establishing" a religion. American Civil Liberties Union West Virginia said they are monitoring the situation at Huntington High School. "What happened at Huntington High School was a very clear violation of both the United States and the West Virginia constitutions," ACLU West Virginia Legal Director Loree Stark told CNN in a statement. "Unfortunately, it was far from a one-off incident. This is a systemic issue in West Virginia, where proselytizing often occurs in public schools." "The Huntington High administration must understand that students being compelled to attend is not the only issue," the wrote. "This Christian revival should not have occurred on public school grounds during school hours in the first place." "The reason we walked out in the first place was because the response from the board was entirely dissatisfactory," Nibert said. "That is just not good enough for the magnitude of what happened and the impact, to be as substantial as it was, serious actions need to be taken to ensure that this doesn't happen again." West Virginia high school students stage a walkout after they say they were forced to attend a Christian revival assemblyclearly unconstitutional.
|
|
teen persuasion
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 21:58:49 GMT -5
Posts: 4,037
|
Post by teen persuasion on Feb 14, 2022 21:43:19 GMT -5
New interesting development due to the book banning -the publisher wants to ban the e-book version from Internet Archive, because of ... profits. Maus publisher vs Internet Archive
|
|
happyhoix
Distinguished Associate
Joined: Oct 7, 2011 7:22:42 GMT -5
Posts: 20,856
|
Post by happyhoix on Feb 15, 2022 8:31:33 GMT -5
|
|
NomoreDramaQ1015
Community Leader
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 14:26:32 GMT -5
Posts: 47,197
|
Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Feb 15, 2022 9:14:54 GMT -5
That really isn't uncommon unfortunately. My daughter's textbook still talks about the Pilgrims and Indians being friends. Slavery got a single paragraph that was pretty white washed. I didn't realize how F-ed up our relationship with the Nazis was until I read Bill O-Riley's Killing the SS a couple years ago. There was stuff in there that we definitely don't mention in history books while talking about America as the hero of WWII. History is written by the victors. For the past 500 years that has been white men of European descent. The current crop of Republicans and Trump are nothing new, these people have always risen up when their privilege has been threatened. The question I have now is how far are they going to succeed in setting us back. They cannot stop progress but they sure as hell can put a roadblock. The destruction and rise of the KKK during the reformation set us back a 100+ years. We can't let that happen again.
|
|
weltschmerz
Community Leader
Joined: Jul 25, 2011 13:37:39 GMT -5
Posts: 38,962
|
Post by weltschmerz on Feb 15, 2022 16:29:32 GMT -5
"Stan Lee and Spider-Man wrote this thing that you might think is very silly today but it's so true...school districts have great power, and with that great power comes great responsibility
Wait...what? Oy!!! It was written in the 1st century. Sword of Damocles. It wasn't written by Stan Lee and Spider Man.
|
|
Tennesseer
Member Emeritus
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 21:58:42 GMT -5
Posts: 63,354
|
Post by Tennesseer on Feb 15, 2022 16:59:22 GMT -5
"Stan Lee and Spider-Man wrote this thing that you might think is very silly today but it's so true...school districts have great power, and with that great power comes great responsibility Wait...what? Oy!!! It was written in the 1st century. Sword of Damocles. It wasn't written by Stan Lee and Spider Man. But did Sword of Damocles mention school districts? So Stan Lee and Spider Man paraphrased the expression.
|
|
Tennesseer
Member Emeritus
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 21:58:42 GMT -5
Posts: 63,354
|
Post by Tennesseer on Mar 14, 2022 9:53:03 GMT -5
Book is listed as reading age 6-10 years old. Mississippi assistant principal fired for reading children’s book deemed inappropriateAn elementary school assistant principal was fired last week for reading a children’s book to a second grade class that was deemed inappropriate by school district leaders. Toby Price was fired from Gary Road Elementary in Mississippi after he read “I Need a New Butt” by Dawn McMillan to students, The Associated Press reported. The book is about a child who wants a new butt after he finds out his “has a huge crack.” “Will he choose an armor-plated butt? A rocket butt? A robot butt? Find out in this quirky tale of a tail, which features hilarious rhymes and delightful illustrations,” the book says. “Children and parents will love this book — no ifs, ands, or butts about it!” Price, who was the school’s assistant principal for three years, called the book “funny and silly” and said he never got complaints when he read it in other school districts in the past, according to the AP. “I was asked to schedule a Zoom where we were going to have a guest reader with the second graders. The Zoom reader didn’t show, and I didn’t hear back, so I was told to go ahead and read,” Price told multiple outlets. “I didn’t think twice about reading it because I’ve never had an issue with it before. There are other books that have much more suggestive material that are much more widely accepted,” he added. The book is suggested for a target audience of four to 10 year olds, according to the AP. Price said he has never had a discipline referral before and that he plans to contest his firing at a March 21 hearing. Hinds County Schools Superintendent Delesicia Martin said Price was fired for “unnecessary embarrassment, a lack of professionalism and impaired judgment” in selecting the book, the AP reported. Mississippi assistant principal fired for reading children’s book deemed inappropriate
|
|
Tennesseer
Member Emeritus
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 21:58:42 GMT -5
Posts: 63,354
|
Post by Tennesseer on Apr 12, 2022 10:09:48 GMT -5
Another book pulled? 'It's Okay To Be A Unicorn' Comes Under Fire In Ohio School DistrictSome people are apparently out for unicorn blood in Ohio. Parents in the Buckeye Valley School District near Columbus reportedly mobilized last week to ban the children’s book “It’s Okay to Be a Unicorn.” The funny, upbeat book with colorful unicorns (and a rainbow) lets kids know it’s OK to be themselves — which the book’s detractors apparently viewed as a subversive message. Author Jason Tharp said a school principal told him last week that he could no longer read the book at a local school event as scheduled. A teacher said they were ordered to remove student artwork related to it from the walls. Tharp later received an email from district officials telling him he could also no longer read his book “It’s Okay to Smell Good” (about a skunk) during his visit, he told WBNS-TV news. A handful of parents turned up for a school district emergency meeting on Friday about the unicorn book — however, they all reportedly wanted the book to stay. “So why couldn’t we read a book with a rainbow on it?” asked one disgusted parent, who also teaches in the district. (Check out the video below.) Froelich did not say when the book would be “vetted” and if it will ever be allowed back in the classroom. Another local outlet, WSYX, reported that a group of parents were upset that the book was promoting LGBTQ issues. The district denied that the book was banned in a statement to WSYX and said “all student artwork will be displayed.” But Tharp disputed that and said he was not allowed to read the book. “I never in a million years thought I’d have to defend a unicorn book,” he told WBNS. The conflict was apparently triggered by the book’s bright colors and an image of a rainbow. “Slap a rainbow on anything these days,” Tharp said, according to WBNS, and some people immediately view it as a reference to the LGBTQ community. He said his book wasn’t specifically about being gay. “I’m here to create books that inspire kids to dream big and embrace themselves,” Tharp said. “I think a book can save people, because that’s [what] saved me,” he added. “I got lost in books, and [they] taught me that it was OK to be creative, and it was OK to think differently. So that was what my mission was with this book — to write something that helped kids understand it is good that you’re different than me ... because we can learn something from each other.” Michelle Mauk, who works for the district, was stunned the book triggered a conflict. “It’s highly disappointing because there’s absolutely no reason for it,” Mauk told WSYX. “Inclusion is a wonderful thing.” 'It's Okay To Be A Unicorn' Comes Under Fire In Ohio School District
|
|
teen persuasion
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 21:58:49 GMT -5
Posts: 4,037
|
Post by teen persuasion on Apr 12, 2022 21:21:55 GMT -5
No unicorn books! Do none of these people have young children or grandchildren? Unicorn-theme books are the hot popular genre in children's books.
A recent book with a new twist that we added to the collection: Invasion of the Unicorns.
|
|
teen persuasion
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 21:58:49 GMT -5
Posts: 4,037
|
Post by teen persuasion on May 6, 2022 13:45:11 GMT -5
Now it's politicians in Idaho demonizing libraries, and "government" schools. LIBRARIES ARE PROMOTING AN AGENDA TO DESTROY FAMILIES”: IDAHO STATE REP PARTNERS ON PROGRAM TO REMOVE BOOKS FROM LIBRARIESOMG, nongendered bathrooms! Whatever will we do? we have *one* bathroom, of course it's nongendered. Hormone blockers? In the library? Boys with pierced ears and painted nails? Yeah, we DON'T discriminate at the library. Who cares, anyway. Drag queen story time IS a thing, in some areas. Not mine, probably not Idaho... know your patrons, and cater to their interests, duh. HB 666, in case you missed it. Need some biblical bread crumbs for the faithful to follow. My favorite part (alleged confessions of an unnamed librarian):
|
|