One of the best things about Americans Who Tell the Truth is the accessible nature of founding artist, Robert Shetterly. Rob is in schools all the time with the portraits. Teachers and children find that Rob, like those he paints, is walking the talk.  Here is a conversation with Rob and Eric Russell.  More to come on Eric and Rob’s work together! For now, students and teachers will appreciate this discussion and can seek their own answers for the questions which arise such as the opener: who and what is a hero?

I would encourage teachers to share this story this week, also. This photo created quite a stir at the time it was taken. When funding is available for war, and when children live in places like this in our own country…..their own particular brand of a ‘war zone.”http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/31/nyregion/31metjournal.html Some follow up questions after reading:For those who saw the photo and offered to send things to the family, write a short first person narrative from the father to them. Consider what he says and what is stated about the living conditions for the girl in the article when writing.What does it mean that so many people offered to help this girl and that so many children continue to live like this in our country, despite these heartfelt moments of generosity? Why are both these things true- that people can have moments of outpouring when seeing this photo but that the conditions exist in the first place?FAnd here’s the trailer for the film “Fierce Light” which seeks to define and demonstrates the “fierce light” activism needed to make real change. 

This week begins with the Day of the Dead, one of the oldest celebrations of the Americas.  In honoring the festival, those who have died at this time, Patty Mara , an artist, created a clay skull whose banner over the head reads “Children of War.” She did this to honor the children who have died in the war in Iraq, as well as children here who have lost their parents in the war. As your students learn about this festival, can you incorporate an offering to the dead in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan? This week I will post daily on some aspect of the wars as related to the truth tellers from Americans Who Tell the Truth, thus hoping to create an “offering ” of sorts to their courage and perseverance in speaking out about the cyclical ,  unending need of the United States government to engage in war and occupation around the world. The more students understand the true nature of war and what it robs us of , beyond the dead we honor and call to at this festival, there are other “deaths” that I will refer to this week. I hope you will consider creating an offering in your classroom. You might have students who have lost a family member in war or who have neighbors/friends who are more directly connected. In general, though, what I believe this “alter/offering” can imply by its creation is that we are ALL connected and therefore, these wars are ours. The question is : what are we going to do with and about them? The Americans Who Tell the Truth curriculum is adding a section on War and the study of its implications. I’ll let you know when it’s up and running!Here is a photo of the clay skull Ms. Mara createdThis ceramic “sugar” skull mask was made to honor and remember all the children who suffer because of war. “Children of War” is inscribed on the name banner at the top of the mask. It has hung on my Day of the Dead altar for 2 years, next to pictures of children from Iraq and children of our soldiers. Watch this beautiful video that describes well the intent and sacred nature of the Day of the Dead festivals.  

 Photo by truth teller Dorothea Lange used as a symbol of the return of  another historical era’s poverty to citizen’s lives.Have students watch this! More examples of what it is to be a citizen!

http://gayrights.change.org/actions/view/tell_scholastic_to_stop_censoring_gay_friendly_books

Tell Scholastic to Stop Censoring Gay Friendly Books

To: Richard Robinson (Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Scholastic), Kyle Good (Vice President, Corporate Communications, Scholastic) and Teryl McLane (Senior Manager of Communications, Scholastic Book Fairs)Started by: Michael JonesScholastic, one of the largest education publishers in the world with broad influence over the reading materials of children everywhere, just dipped its toe into the anti-gay movement.The publisher is censoring a book that depicts a girl character with two moms because they consider it offensive and inappropriate for children, preventing it from appearing in its Scholastic Book Fairs.  These are the same book fairs that have reach to millions of schoolchildren nationwide.  By censoring the book, Scholastic is sending the discriminatory and harmful message to children everywhere that same-sex relationships and gay/lesbian parents are wrong and should be hidden from sight.The book in question is Lauren Myracle’s new book Luv Ya Bunches, which features one character that has two moms.  One of Scholastic’s justifications for censoring the book is that they wanted to avoid letters of complaint from anti-gay parents.This is offensive, wrong, and exactly the opposite of the message of tolerance we should be sending to children.Tell Scholastic today that you are outraged by its decision and demand that they stop censoring gay-friendly books immediately.

What if students were to research the Americans Who Tell the Truth site and dress up and share the quote from the truth teller portrait of their choice? Assign students a truth teller based upon an area of their particular interest or a book they’ve read by a truth teller!Happy Halloween! 

Coalfield residents and the national allies are calling on all concerned citizens to contact President Obama, CEQ chief Nancy Sutley, EPA chief Lisa Jackson, and Sen. Robert Byrd to halt this unfolding tragedy.In a blatant act of aggression against besieged coalfield residents, blasting dangerously close to one of the largest coal slurry impoundments in the nation, and immediately eliminating 24 megawatts of wind power development for the internationally acclaimed Coal River Wind Project, a subsidiary of Big Coal behemoth Massey Energy recently lay waste to the first acres of the 1,100-acre Bee Tree Branch section of a proposed 6,000-acre mountaintop removal operation designed to destroy the last in tact mountain on the historic Coal River Mountain range.Here are the first exclusive photos of the destruction:This blasting in the Bee Tree Branch area of Coal River Mountain effectively derails the Coal River Wind Project. Unlike the limited 14-year supply of coal on the site, the Coal River Wind project could provide long-term energy for 70,000 households, an estimated 200 jobs and $1.7 million in annual county taxes. In spite of the blasting, the upcoming UN conference on climate change in Copenhagen will also be reviewing the Coal River Wind proposal as a model for sustainable green economic development in the United States.Last week, area residents also appealed to Gov. Manchin to halt the blasting and order a state of emergency, in order to thoroughly investigate the catastrophic potential of the jeopardized Brushy Fork coal slurry impoundment, which holds back billions of gallons of toxic coal sludge. Blasting is taking place within a dangerously close distance of honey-combed underground mines by the impoundment dam.Residents noted that another Massey subsidiary in eastern Kentucky was responsible for the largest coal slurry spill in 2000, where 300 million gallons of toxic sludge into the area’s waterways and aquifers. If the earthen Brushy Fork dam breaks, nearly 1,000 area residents will have less than five minutes to save their lives.In effect, Coal River Mountain should be ground zero in the climate change and renewable energy movements.And the blasting of Bee Tree Branch will not only strip the great range of its resources, its tributaries and lush forests, its history and its meaning; it will rob Americans of the possibility of creating long-lasting green jobs and energy. It will resound as the death knell of an American and Appalachian way of life, and a rejection of any opportunities for a sustainable future for the embattled coalfields.The blasting has been launched.Will the nation — and the Obama administration — defend Coal River Mountain from this reckless assault on American citizens, our American mountains and waterways, and a clean energy future?Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeff-biggers/exclusive-photos-battle-a_b_333000.html

Here are a few articles, videos and current news items related to mountaintop removal issues.http://ilovemountains.org/coalriver/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeff-biggers/exclusive-photos-battle-a_b_333000.ht 

The most underreported, under-discussed, under-considered issue of our time but one of implications beyond measure. As my colleague Alvin Herring says, ” Who said it was ok to blow the tops of our mountains and then try to keep it a secret?”Truth tellers who have written about, worked against and tried to give voice to the mountains include:Erik Reece, Teri Blanton, Denise Giardina ,JudyBonds, Larry Gibson, Wendell Berry

Robert Shetterly was recently sent these photos and accompanying explanation.I would warn you before showing them to students that there will be some that will be too aligned with and sensitive to their natural surroundings and might find the pictures disturbing. I am asking that you preview them for yourselves. I have known some younger students, even those in the middle grades to be very upset when seeing photos of the degredation of beautiful creatures/trees/flowers/mountains and they need to be older to take that information in. For now, giving them ways of being useful and doing something are of most help.But for older students , these types of photos make the change in climate very real. For some, this will be a way to focus on one aspect of the whole of climate change disaster and of the human being’s disregard for the homes of its fellow passengers on the planet. Discuss the link and ask them what they feel is a valid response to these types of presentations and/or an action step they feel could be taken by them as a group or as individuals. A simple first step might be to research the writer/photographer further and write to him/her to learn more , for example.http://www.chrisjordan.com/current_set2.php?id=11

Read this informative post by a CA educator and advocate for education reform.On 27/28 October there will be an online forum for which questions can be submitted by us ahead of time. The list of participants on the panel is exciting. Hope you can take advantage of all or some part!http://www.huffingtonpost.com/esther-wojcicki/thousands-of-kids-drop-ou_b_334111.html