What would you do?

[ridiculous2000]

Greetings Sorors and Sisterfriends,

I just wanted to ask a quick question. We all should know that this is Black History Month. I am a second grade teacher in a predominately rural white community. I am talking about red neck heaven. I have 17 students and only one is black.

For Black History Month I have put up a bulletin board about African American leaders. I have pictures of Frederick Douglass, Maya Angelou, Rosa Parks, etc. I was kind of debating if I would put Jesse Jackson on my bulletin board. I thought about it and I decided to put him up. Of course, my students did not know none of the other leaders that I put on the board, but when I put Jesse up they seemed to be more interested. One of my students said that he looks cool. I am pretty sure that he has been a topic in my students' homes. I know that he has been in the public eye lately and my question is: Would you have done the same thing that I did by profiling him as an African-American leader?

Sorry for the long post.

[Rachel0497]

I am at odds over this as well. I guess one could call him an influential black person, but I have problems calling him a leader. Who proclaimed him spokesperson/president of all blacks? I probably would have included him just because, but it really does bother me-he has proven himself to be a hypocrite just like a number of white politicians.

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Sassy, Classy, but never Trashy-The Ladies of Z Phi B!

[Chi_ZETABBW]

GOOD Question. I wish I had a good answer. Honestly, I can't say. He is viewed as a leader by many African Americans, so much so the scandal has pretty much been swept under the rug, I live in Chicago and havn't heard anything else about it in over 2 weeks. But I know I tend to be hard on folks, even harder on myself. Yes, we all make mistakes, but I just hold an ordained minister up to a higher set of moral values.
So It would have been a battle inside me to post his pic or not. But I do believe the children should be familiar with his name, and his accomplishments. See I told you, I was in conflict over this, LOL.

[1blubaby]

Soror,

You should have put up some Malcolm X!! That would have been interesting!! My child, at her school is the only African American in her class of 22 children. The teacher who is white, told the children that African American history month was the month of January and that is when they "celebrated" if you will, Black History Month. DId I say my child was new at the school, well I had to "inform" the teacher that was wrong!! But getting to my point, They had the usual people as leaders, my thing is I wanted my child to learn some not so "household" names such as Rev. Jackson, not because he is a Leader, but because of what he has done to keep Black issues in the fore front.Hell, I would even venture to put Clarence Thomas on the board cause he is an African American Supreme Court justice, even though he doesn't realize it. Show that African Americans are things other than some of the less than favorable characters that we so many times are shown to be. That we are lawyers, doctors, teachers, astronauts, brain surgeons, etc......JMHO