Getting All Political

I have been teaching in the same school district for five years now and I can honestly say that I have lost track of the number of times we (teachers) have been told, in meetings and emails, that under no circumstance are we to “get political” in our classrooms. I can tell you that every time this message is delivered, I wish I had the power or voice to counter it. I haven’t yet, in my career, but maybe someday. Because here is the thing, as educators, we cannot be afraid to talk about real issues and reality, and education is not and cannot be neutral. And whether we like it or not, silence (aka, what most administrators would call “neutrality”) IS a political stance.  

I think Elie Weisel says it best so I will let him say it:

However, I do understand where this concern comes from. And it is the same concern mentioned in pages 127-130 of Rethinking Popular Media and Culture “Shhh!! No Opinions in the Library: IndyKids and kids’ right to an independent press” by Amanda Vender. 

This particular chapter discusses a conflict that the progressive magazine, IndyKids faced when trying to partner with public libraries in NYC in 2005. The magazine is for kids in grades 4-7 and covers relevant topics, including controversial ones. Local librarians were hesitant to display or even host the magazine at all because the magazine did not shy away from controversial topics. 

I was curious about the magazine so I researched it and the website is still active:

Author of the article (and founder of the magazine) points out that librarians did not find conflict prominently displaying other types of magazines, such as a Boy Scouts one that hosted ads from the National Rifle Association (NRA) or issues of American Girl. Furthermore, she argues that there is a myth of “unbiased” news that is pervasive in education: “All news publications, those aimed at both kids and adults, come from a certain political perspective or not” (129). 

Reading this chapter, I was honestly surprised by the librarians' responses and refusal to host the magazine, as I typically associate libraries with free speech, and certainly not censorship. But this particular quote is telling. One library explained to Vendor that, “Most of us children’s librarians live in the constant fear that one of those petition-wielding parents will cry foul over a selection we have made” (129). 

This fear is not actually unfounded. At my own school, we have had instances where parents have refused to let children participate in reading certain books (typically I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou) and have even questioned why we even have the book in our curriculum. 

But, as Vender points out, “kids need a free press, too” and they deserve one that covers the issues they care about and at a reading level that meets their needs. Librarians and teachers alike need to have these difficult conversations with our higher-ups so that we can effectively “get all political” in the classroom.