Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said: " I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality.... I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word."
I refuse to be defined by hate,
I refuse to be the pawn in the hands of bigots and racists,
I refuse to reduce those human beings I teach to the statistics of fear,
I refuse labels,
I refuse standards without equity,
I refuse to part of the scam to close Black, Brown, and Poor Schools.
I refuse to see less in any child, when I know they are so much more than your test scores.
I am a public school teacher.
I am,
A builder of tomorrows,
A teacher of hope in the darkness,
A miracle worker in a world of inequity,
A path builder for brighter days,
A candle stick maker for those lost in darkness,
A teacher who sees hearts beating, not hearts bleeding,
A teacher who sees hope and beauty in Black, Brown, DECCA, Poor and Special Education children in our schools and universities.
I am a public school teacher.
I am not special,
I am not great,
I am not gifted,
I am another link in that long line of young mind liberators.
I am a public school teacher.
I am a bringer of hope,
I am a finder of book that open minds,
I am the voice in young minds,
That says rise up ye mighty ones,
You are more than worthy.
I am a public school teacher.
You are our tomorrows,
You are hope rising,
You are meant for greater things,
I am a public school teacher.
I am here,
To guide you,
To push you,
To move you,
I am your teacher.
I refuse to be define,
By CEOs seeking tax breaks and profits,
By Billionaires and millionaires,
By policy makers,
By legislators,
People whose have never taught children anything,
I am bigger than their hype,
I am bigger than their scams, I am a public school teacher.
Just Another Proud Public School Teacher,
Jesse The Walking Man Turner
Jesse The Walking Man Turner
"You who are on the road
Must have a code that you can live by
And so become yourself
Because the past is just a good-bye.
Teach your children well. "
If you like to listen to the song that inspired my walk on this rain free day...it Playing For Change Teach Your Children
Wow. Thank you for this. I just came from a faculty meeting about PARCC, PARCC,and more PARCC.
ReplyDeleteJesse, I love your poem! I am going to share it with our union mentoring group called COME Forward (Caucus of Millennial Educators) tomorrow. We need these words and the feelings they evoke! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteYou made my day Joanna
ReplyDelete