Teachers have a sacred duty to tell their teaching stories

It is July 1, 2019, time to start preparing for NCTE's Embracing Diversity through Meaningful Inquiry July 12–13, 2019 Columbia, South Carolina week.

I am looking forward to spending time with my Save Our School March Friends, Bess Altwerger, Rick Meyer, Ricardo Rosa.

I have the honor of introducing the mighty mighty Dr. Julian Vasquez Heilig there. If by chance you do not know Dr. Vasquez Heilig, just google him. His blog Cloaking Inequity is always on my reading list. https://cloakinginequity.com/ He is a must read, must follow, must listen to pro public-school education activist voice. He is a must study social justice equity scholar and activist.

I am working hard planning my own session: “A pedagogy of Love: from Whole Language Educator to Civil Rights Activist: This session shares: The Autoethnology of Jesse The Walking Man Turner transformative journey from teacher to Civil Rights Activist. My story is an invitation to others to join me. I shall also share ways to join the fight openly and safe ways to join the fight subversively for teachers who fear retaliation at their work. This is real, we do have many teachers being bullied at their schools for standing up for children. Caring for our children, means caring for each other, and standing up for public education at all levels from Pre-K to University. It is all under attacked by these profiteers who are reducing public education to capital manipulation. The Common Good has no place in their world of our children are their profits.

The plan is simple, we teachers have a sacred duty to defend their students, each other, and the communities we teach in. This duty compels us to fight for justice in the school house, and outside their walls.

It's not a new idea, Dr. Yohuru Williams often speaks about that old alliance between teachers, labor, and the Civil Rights Movement. It's an old school alliance, when Dr. King called, we teachers join every march.

I am going to NCTE to deliver the message that alliance needs reviving more than ever before. SOS has been answering that called since its birth in 2010. The plan is to use one teacher's story to inspire a birth of new stories. Saving our public schools requires a generation of new stories.

At 8 years old, I was in DC in 63 at that March on Washington. Sometimes, I think I am always marching.  I have always been fighting this battle not only for my students, my fellow teachers, our public schools, but for the soul of our teaching profession.

Our profession is under attack, from Education Privatizers who want teachers to be silent, to be obedient, to toe the line of our children, their teachers, and our local public schools as profit margins.

I am an one of those old school teacher, when injustice came around, I have always answered the call.
Nothing has changed, I never left that Teacher, labor, Civil rights Alliance.

My message at NCTE 2019 will be simple. Teachers are duty bound, to be active members of that old alliance.

Teachers, there's a train coming.
Get on board,
Dr. Jesse P. Turner
Save Our Schools
Moral Monday CT Education Ambassador
CSU-AAUP Due Justice Liaison

If you want to listen to the tune I was playing during my walk this July morning its The ther Beat(en) Geraration https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ustXRPke9lM&list=PLy_AmnYLyvV_MKycRRtpwc7p0iScyG0tp&index=4

Teachers must WOKE this nation!

First realize, the red herring is the student loan forgiveness. Trust me they have no real intention of seeing this one through. But, it is giving them cover from the bigger questions about their policies. Something to remember every single one of them have supported policies that focused on testing and school choice scams. At the very least they were silent.

I am asking every rank and file member in AFT and NEA to email and call their leadership. Ask them to demand real K-12 questions about privatization, testing, Class size, and the increasing disrespect of our profession. 
What else can we do? Show up at every rally with signs, at every campaign stop, email, call every candidate's campaign office. We need to WOKE this nation before 2020.

We can't afford another decade of these demoralizing policies.
We can’t afford to be silent one more day,
Jesse The Walking Man Turner 

If you like to listen to the tune that inspired my walk this morning over the Avon Mountain...its Marvin Gay's 'What's Going on'... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPkM8F0sjSw

Big Debate Loser MSNBC

I have watch Joe Scarborough and actually everyone on MSNBC promote education policy reforms that have demoralized public school teachers, and devastated Black, Brown, and Poor Schools for over a decade.

I have watch them with straight faces promote charter schools, school choice without equity policies, cheered on Arne Duncan at every step of the way.

I have watch School Choice Advocate for ten years now. I find these choice c pushers, remind me of those old Eugenics Progressives their stances are deeply rooted in poverty is a choice, inequity is a choice, and all people of color need to do is make the choice not to victims of racism, hate, and discrimination. Trust us, all we want is to help people of color make the right choice.

Maybe, I have it wrong, but this is the way I have come to view them after a decade of their love affair with Michelle Rhee, Arne Duncan, TFA, and Charter Schools.

The only one acceptable choice today. That choice is genuine equity for all our children in all our public schools. Anything else, well that just RACISM 101.


Simple truth,
Dr. Jesse P. Turner
Save Our Schools March

If you like to listen to the song that inspired my walk this morning its Buffalo Springfield's "What's that sound" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gp5JCrSXkJY