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By Elston Destry Hortman
Milwaukee Teachers' Education Association
It is up to us to save the children.
It is up to us to save the children.
It is up to us to save the children.
Because when we save the children, we save ourselves.
You’ve heard it many times; it takes a village to raise a child.
We as educators are but one part of that village.
We here in America are blessed and cursed.
We enjoy many services and privileges that we have grown to take for granted; such as clean water, safe food, “access” to quality health care (for many), garbage collection, environmental protection, law enforcement and a, most of the time, humane and relatively fair judicial system, just to name a few.
America is also a land of opportunity. Where else on earth can people get rich doing some of the things they do here?
Now, what’s the curse?, you may ask.
Taking these things for granted makes us very vulnerable.
Greed, corruption, and ignorance are but three monsters that threaten to destroy our way of life.
Who will make sure the water is clean enough to drink when whoever is doing it now retires?
Who will make sure that the food we so trustingly purchase from restaurants and grocery stores is safe to eat when whoever is doing it now retires?
Who will provide us with quality and compassionate health care when the person who is doing it now retires?
Who will make sure the garbage in our alleys does not pile up sky high when the person who is doing it now retires?
Who will protect our environment?
Who will enforce the law?
Who will judge fairly?
When the ones who are doing it now retire?
I’ll tell you who, the children that we teach everyday.
We much help and push our student to THINK. We must help them to see past the BOLOGNA that the media shovels at them everyday.
They must learn that there is more to life than eating, drinking, sport, violence and sex.
We must show them that everything they see around them and many things they do not are a potential source for employment.
We much arm them, not only with the basics, the 3 R’s, but also with the 3 C’s, compassion, caring and cooperation.
We as educators have our work cut out for us, but the work we do is definitely a labor of love.
And when ever you get discouraged or disappointed,
Just remember…….
It is up to us to save the children, because when we save the children, we save ourselves.