Cutbacks to public education is CLASSISM.
Classism is a form of violence, which discriminates and oppresses those living in all parts of the social strata. It is a prejudice that holds people in the lower economic echelons back and violates anyone who tries to attain the unattainable lifestyle. In other words, it erodes the self-worth of those not sharing the ideals of mainstream society. But at the same time, it envelopes us all with a set of beliefs, smothering any attempt to live freely and to live without the concept of money being the only thing to be sought after in today’s world.
A poetic metaphor for teachers and students in Quebec:
sleepless
tired
she stumbled into a door
not sure which one
was opening for her
she put her foot there, in case someone slammed it
shut again
they didn’t see the peasant in flowers
no one really took notice of her
sitting humbly in one corner
don’t remember words or if any of the things she said were
right or wrong
wrong or right
coexistence maybe
fell asleep with no notice of clocks
heard another door slam, waking her up
from the window made of leathered seats
she noticed even
from an angle
she could see a boat in her father’s shed
quiet ventured in
took Plato with her
and she began to think
of the poem she wrote for a friend
called Tea
went to the back where she normally
pressed against the wall to climb out through
Alice’s rabbit hole
words, words, words,
her life falling out
around her
she listened and saw statues in houses
bought tarts
as a product of the system
in a museum surrounded by
the preoccupations of the elite
erected on walls
she saw the opening of the door but did not want
hierarchy pinned to her name
she liked her quiet
until a small amount of education illuminated her existence
and she became – teacher
I’ve heard my classes will be oversized
and my students with high needs will be unsupported and unseen
I open up doors to freedom – the teacher
I see potential in misspelt words – teacher
I see hidden corporate businesses and government cutbacks
I wish my students had padded chairs
I yell out
I make lesson plans and you cannot
help me give a quality education
I teach students to avoid things they cannot see – and to understand it too
to look for something better
than lies
to find a third eye
to define their existence
to look for something honest and maybe to
dial up God, yah I said it, kids still need a little bit of God
I don’t want to lose
maybe there are a few angels over their heads who protect them
from your injustice
If you cannot see, I do
I’ll teach poetry and dreams
give them words
in a world that doesn’t own societal fault
I tell them loudly
YOU are not a social status
you are not the money
you have, you are human first
you are person first
Prada second
you are awake
put on the alarm clock
and allow teachers to teach
don’t you want equality, don’t you want us to succeed
Teachers teach.
Photo Credits
Photo by Melinda Cochrane – all rights reserved
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