Education reform didn’t invent advocacy. We look to social movements both past and present for inspiration. In the entrance of 50CAN headquarters is a gallery of the top 10 most inspiring advocates from other fields, as chosen by our staff. We think of them as our professors.And the list?
- Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo (children lost during Argentina's Dirty War)
- Nelson Mandela (you know)
- Raphael Lemkin (Holocaust survivor advocate)
- Clara Lemlich (labor leader - no irony here, huh?)
- Wael Ghonim (Egyptian Revolution tweeter)
- Billie Jean King (tennis great)
- Temple Grandin (animal rights activist)
- Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein (the Watergate reporters)
- Sojourner Truth (the abolitionist)
- The Unknown Rebel (the guy who stood up to the tank in Tiananmen Square)
I was going to make some snarky, sarcastic comments here, but I just can't - this just goes too far.
It's bad enough that these people wrap themselves around platitudes about children. It's bad enough they don't teach while advocating for the erosion of the teacher workplace protections. It's bad enough they advocate all kinds of crazy nonsense that has never been shown to work.
But now they've become so delusional that they see a moral equivalency between their cushy, billionaire-funded think-tanky lobbying and genuine political prisoners.
What the hell is wrong with these people?
I'll tell you what's wrong with these people. They live in wealth and privilege and,as such assume for themselves the divine right of kings.
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