By Sammy Ginsberg
In my last update (Update #19), I ended up contextualizing the work I am doing because I’m freaking out about how BAD things are on a macro-level! Are you??? Like it’s offensive to poop to call what’s going on shitty. It’s straight up atrocious.
Being back in LA where human rights violations are occuring in front of me and to people I love (my uncle who is a rabbi in LA was attacked at a grocery store by someone saying pro-palestine things!! I know that what is going on in Palestine is many many human rights violations being perpetrated by Israel and the US governments, and think a two-state solution is necessary to create peace and called my representatives to let them know. It is also a human rights violation to attack a person in a grocery store for ANY REASON but especially religion, ethnicity, and national-affiliations!!
This happened to the Asian community during COVID!! It’s the same fucking shit!!
As a teacher, I think- what would I do if that happened in my classroom? What are the consequences? From being a teacher, I know that they’d just get a stern talking to and call their parents (who wouldn’t be helpful because often the kids act that way because their parents allow them to!), and be back in my classroom the next day. My administrator would tell me to keep on teaching Shakespeare, and ignore what happened because hate crimes, racism, and talking about the Israel-Palestine conflict could get parents upset.
That’s almost literally what happened to me in May except it was between a student who was black and a student who was hispanic with a legal disability saying hurtful, racist, and homophobic things to each other. And, I was told by my administrator that I overreacted, should not have contacted parents, and to keep teaching Romeo and Juliet!
Thankfully my coach validated what happened to me, as well as my teacher-friends. However, the message was clear. You do not have power to change the situation at your school or your administrator. All you can do is save yourself, find your allies, and keep fighting.
Thus, I lost that battle. But the war is not over.
There is a lot of work to do. I’ve chosen my work. Please help me focus and say no.
I am focusing on improving the infrastructure of support for writers and teachers of writing in America and the United Kingdom because I believe that by all people being strong writers, they will have the strength to reflect, think critically, imagine, and communicate effectively to develop trusting, healthy relationships with themselves and their communities.
I am doing this by:
- organizing the first ever Los Feliz Writers Festival on August 23 & 24
- serving as the co-director of the CSUN Writing Project
- serving as the engagement specialist for Writing Partners
- substitute teaching to help teachers
- organizing Thrive for Teachers California, a group coaching program for teachers led by Lynn & Jared
- offering tutoring and coaching for students on their writing for their classes, as well as college applications
I would love to support you in your work! I love to support you in choosing your work, staying, focused and saying no.
Sending love and strength to wherever you are!!
We are in this together!
Sincerely,
Sammy
PS. After this, I’m moving back to my quarterly newsletters. I am out of crisis mode, and now I am doing the work to be stable!
Loveee youuuu!!!
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