Year 11 – Week 18: Teachng After An Insurrection

I knew this week was going to be different, but I had no idea it was going to be like this.

It was the first week back after winter break. Like other years we had Monday as a teacher in-service day. These two factors were enough to make this week unique in past years, but this year is special. My school decided that this week the whole school would be remote to give us time to have all of the faculty and students do COVID-19 testing before resuming in-person school next week. I really appreciate that my school is making this extra step to lessen the chances of exposure. No, testing will not ensure that COVID-19 will not spread at my school, but combined with other mitigation practices, it will make a difference in keeping students and faculty safe.

That all seemed like enough of a challenge for this week, and then on Wednesday, the insurrection at the Capitol Building happened in Washington D.C. instigated by trump. If all teachers had to do was list through this event and go back to teaching on Thursday morning, that would challenge. But the fact that we had the responsibility as educators to address the riot made this Thursday and Friday much more difficult.

In moments like these, teachers need to be careful that what they are doing is for their students and not themselves, and not to make assumptions about students' reactions.

Some people felt the events of Wednesday very deeply, and some people didn't. People who weren't immediately emotionally aren't necessarily people who lack empathy. Some people process emotions and react to events differently and at different speeds. Children in school need to have the space to do this as well.

I asked my students on Thursday and Friday if they wanted to had any thoughts or reflections they wanted to share about Wednesday's events, and none of them wanted to. They had talked about this in-depth with other teachers, so I asked them to share parts of those discussions with me. I was happy to hear that my colleagues had created space for them to process what had happened.

I told my students that the seditious riots on Wednesday are very difficult to process and understand. It's ok for them to be confused, ask questions, and feel differently about what happened than other people. Then I helped them understand how our work exploring 1960s Motown and Atlantic Records music was important. 1960s Motown and Atlantic Records music was important.

Sometimes doing anti-racist work very hard. It can be painful work that can bring up challenging emotions to experience and process. And sometimes anti-racist work can be joyful and fun. What we are doing, trying to figure out what is awesome, inspiring, and beautiful about Black music of the 1960s, is anti-racist work, and it's a great time. As we connect to music, we better understand the people and the culture behind that music. This helps us see people different from us and ourselves as more human. As racism lies in how people see others as less than human, anti-racist work is finding the humanity in others, and music is a wonderful way to do that.  So let's get to work.