Michael Kors’ Post

New Blog Post! More of a thank you letter to Sandra Duff Anderson! Join me as I talk about one of the biggest influences of my childhood. It takes a lot to build a village, but it will only be done with people who are willing to sacrifice for the benefit of others. "As I reflect on God's Church Christian Academy (GCCA), I can't help but ask the question, "Was it a better school than Carrie A. Tuggle Elementary would have been for me or Wilkerson Middle for my sister?" If I'm honest, the answer to that question is probably not, but it's complicated. GCCA wasn't a wealthy school, nor a segregation academy (schools started after the 1954 Brown v Board ruling meant to curb integration); it was an all-Black school founded to provide hope and second chances. GCCA was in an older building and housed students from Kindergarten to twelfth grade. It was a large red brick building with a basketball court across the street and always seemed full of life and energy. Its original purpose was either a large church or a small school, but my memory fails me to recall its original design. I had many experiences there. I will share a few enjoyable memories, but here are a few, shall I say, traumatic ones that shaped my childhood at this school." #communitybuilders #communitybuilding #servantleadership #teachers https://lnkd.in/era8GuYa

John Eaves, Ph.D., I wanted to thank you for sharing your outstanding efforts. Your passion for combating antisemitism is truly inspiring and I am sharing your message with my #network. In light of the Israel-Hamas War, there has been an increase in hate crimes which are having a negative impact on various communities (domestic and internationally). It is imperative that we work together to promote #understanding and #tolerance and to address these issues with sensitivity and #compassion. As we approach the month of May, nearly seven years ago, Neo-Nazis marched through Charlottesville, Virginia, chanting “Jews will not replace us” while holding torches and spewing the same hateful rhetoric that was heard in Europe during the 1930s. The horror of that moment, the violence that followed, and the threat it represented to American democracy drove my passion to serve. Since then, numerous attacks on Jewish Americans and other groups have occurred, shaking our moral conscience as Americans and challenging the values for which we stand. That is why I support the efforts of my office, #CP3, and the #USG to bring communities from across the country together to combat hate in all its forms, including the persistent scourge of antisemitism. We must stand #united, regardless of our backgrounds and beliefs, and affirm that an attack on any one group is an attack on us all. Hate should have no place in America. It's important that we all work together to ensure that our country remains a safe and welcoming place for everyone. Antisemitism not only threatens the Jewish community but all Americans. Those who peddle these antisemitic conspiracy theories and fuel racial, ethnic, and religious hatred against Jews also target other communities, including #Black and brown Americans, #AsianAmericans, #NativeHawaiians and #PacificIslanders, #LGBTQI+ individuals, #MuslimAmericans, #women, and #girls. We must never allow these hateful voices to become normal or normalized.

Anti-racism isn’t just a buzzword; it’s a revolutionary act of love for our nation. It’s about dismantling systems of oppression that have plagued our society for far too long. It’s about recognizing the inherent worth and dignity of every individual, regardless of the color of their skin. Education is our greatest tool in this fight. Anti-racist education challenges the status quo and empowers future generations to create a more just and equitable society. It’s about teaching our children to critically examine the world around them and to stand up against injustice wherever they see it. To Socratically question American paradoxes through the lens of justice is to honor the legacy of our nation’s greatest thinkers. From Emerson to Morrison, these trailblazers have dared to challenge the status quo and envision a more perfect union. We walk in the footsteps of giants when we embrace anti-racism and culturally responsive teaching. So let us stand together, hand in hand, and declare that we will not rest until every voice is heard, every life is valued, and every dream is within reach. Let us be the change we wish to see in the world, and let us do it with love, compassion, and unwavering dedication to American democracy. #StandTogether #BeTheChange #LoveOverHate #JusticeForAll #AmericanValues #EqualityForAll #EducationForChange #Empowerment #FutureLeaders #SocraticWisdom #CriticalThinking #AmericanLegacy #LegacyOfGreatness #Inspiration #ChangeMakers https://lnkd.in/etYS-_ke

On the anniversary of George Floyd's murder, I want to acknowledge and remember his pain and the worldwide protests that followed. I often tell my colleagues that these days it feels like we're in the twilight zone, especially in #HigherEd. Here in North Carolina, suddenly shifting to where we are now in a UNC system that governs 17 schools (including mine NC State), 5 of them HBCUs, from where we were just four years ago in the months following his death, feels like proverbial whiplash. In the midst of this disappointment, I also remember the gift #GeorgeFloyd gave us is a glimmer of hope. Hope that systemic ills can begin to change, and can do so quickly with the right momentum, as we're still seeing in #disability policy right now. Hope that masses of people can and will rally around a just cause, even while there other major issues competing for our attention. And hope that many people with more privileges will not be quiet and settle for the status quo anymore - especially in Gen Z and Alpha. I don't think the DEIAB industry is perfect by any means. But what industry is? If we humans are involved, perfection can't be the goal. Only progress can. How are you holding on to hope in the face of the disappointment that comes with equity #advocacy and scholarship? https://lnkd.in/eufWFz-A #RethinkRelationship #DEI #LeadershipDevelopment #EducationalEquity #HealthEquity #Neurodiversity

I recently had the privilege of completing "The Anti-Racist School" course, a powerful and enlightening experience designed to deepen our understanding of how racism manifests within educational settings. This course, created by Naomi Evans and Natalie Evans, co-founders of Everyday Racism UK, is an essential resource for anyone involved in education and working with students of all ages. Having followed Everyday Racism for a while on social media, I am constantly inspired by Naomi and Natalie's dedication, expertise, and passion for education and commitment to equality and justice. I highly recommend "The Anti-Racist School" course to all educators, leaders, and support staff. Together, we need to make bigger strides to actively counter racism and white supremacy in our educational environments and ensure that every student thrives. This ties in with 8billionideas mission statement "to give every student on the planet the skills and belief they need to change the world" Key Takeaways from the Course: - Understanding the terminology and concepts associated with anti-racist practice. - Accepting the uncomfortable and recognising how racism and white supremacy can subtly and overtly manifest in our educational systems. - Reflecting on our roles as educators in tackling racism to create inclusive and representative environments for all students. - Updating our curriculum to reflect a diverse range of voices and perspectives - Developing actionable plans to foster a safer, more inclusive environment where every student feels valued and represented https://lnkd.in/eyZ_Yfe3

Leadership

"African Americans are the descendants of captive Africans held in the United States from 1526 to 1865... African descendants...whose ancestors immigrated, or who immigrated to the U.S., also traditionally have been considered African American, as they share a common history of predominantly West African or Central African roots, the horrific Middle Passage of the Diaspora, approximately 340 years of chattel slavery under bitterly brutal conditions including murder, torture, rape, 150 years of federally, state, and locally institutionalized political, economic, and social disenfranchisement, constant and violent terrorism by well known and organized ethnic based hate groups and lynch mobs, lengthy history of denial and deliberate mis-education, a perverting of history, a perverting of religions, forced participation in Jim Crow Era Laws, racial discrimination in every facet of life and in most cases every waking moment of the entire lives of many, many victims, common place and brutal beatings, murder, rape, extortion, mutilations, robbery, sodomy, kidnappings, false imprisonment, etc. by federal, state, and local law enforcement and public officials, a lengthy history of injustice from the federal, state, and local justice systems, political assassinations, constant infiltration and disruption of organized African American human and civil rights, political, and community activists groups, attempted genocide, infanticide, attempted clandestine mass sterilization, constant clandestine medical/psychological/sociopolitical experimentations, a lengthy history of constant threat, harassment, and duress from common place and overt violent acts of racism, mass murder, ongoing bio-terrorist attacks, ongoing “quiet” or silent wars, ongoing covert racism in specialized industries, etc., etc., and still in a constant state of daily hostility and mental anguish while living in a situationally prone overtly racist American society on this day while an African American President sits in the White House (distorted history is evidence of the ongoing well seated ignorance and unrepentant evil that dwells here) for the sixth time in “true” American history. It is these peoples, who in the past were referred to and identified collectively as the Colored, Mullatoes, Creole peoples, Negro, Black, and Afro-American and who now generally consider themselves African Americans. Their history is very rich with ingenuity, innovation, intelligence, courage, faith, perseverance, tolerance, unrelenting and most raw will, constant and multiple struggles and triumph after triumph under the most adverse conditions for the lengthiest time period ever forced upon human beings throughout the history of all of “man”. Their history should be celebrated by all and for all time for it is the very essence of resiliency and the definition of an unbreakable spirit." Akil A. Bomani https://lnkd.in/ghmcF_5F

In 2019, I published, St. Louis School Desegregation: Patterns of Progress and Peril (Palgrave Macmillan). In the book, I use Missouri history to show why school desegregation still matters. At the time, I wrote about the death of Michael Brown as a worst-case scenario. Brown attended a segregated school and Officer Darren Wilson, who killed Brown, also attended a segregated school. I made the argument that if that if black teens and white police officers are meeting for the first time in the middle of a heated exchange, disaster will ensue. Now, we see more dangers of school segregation. A presidential candidate does not know that slavery was the central cause of the Civil War. This false narrative was carefully crafted by Southern schools who refuse to follow the Brown ruling in 1954. What types of decisions will a politician make regarding race, inequality, and discrimination if she was educated in a segregated school? How many other elected officials, corporate leaders, or Supreme Court justices were also educated in segregated schools? It matters because their education is shaping contemporary policy. Let's ask the hard questions. If we are as great as we claim, then we are strong enough to handle the challenges of learning hard history. Our future depends on it. #desegregation #americanhistory #teachers #teachertraining #privateschools The Miseducation of Nikki Haley https://lnkd.in/gxBi9CWa

The #NAACP dropped a resolution on charter schools, and some folks are acting like Black people can’t have a mind of their own. You can be Black. You can be proud. And you can DEFINITELY want to choose your child’s school. #SorryNotSorry this ain’t just about charter schools, it’s about choice. For Black families, opportunity hasn’t always been abundant. We’ve had to fight for everything we have, including the right to choose what’s best for our kids. This isn’t about abandoning public schools, it’s about having options. The narrative around charter schools used to have me singing the same tune. Grandparents were educators, I led racial justice movements – the anti-charter school message was all I knew. Times change, and education needs to evolve too. Some public schools are amazing, some... not so much. Choice empowers parents to find the environment where their child can thrive. This isn’t about blind support for charter schools – it’s about demanding quality education for ALL kids, regardless of zip code or race. #EquityInEducation So, let’s move beyond the stereotypes. Black families deserve a seat at the table, a voice in their child’s education, and the right to choose the path to success. What are your thoughts on school choice? Let’s keep the conversation going in the comments! #UnitedWeEducate #BlackExcellence #SchoolChoiceForTheFuture #PowerToThePeople #EveryKidThrives #BreakingTheCycle https://lnkd.in/eh8qWXB8

Zachor Legal Institution works with a number of other organizations, including Parents Defending Education, to ensure that all those that oppose discrimination being taught in our schools via ethnic studies will be aware of the dire situation. This article highlights the problems found at one California high school. The school's curriculum focuses on “systems of oppression” with lessons on the “Four I’s of Oppression,” power and privilege, and colonialism. One example provided in lessons on colonialism focuses on “Palestinian dispossession of lands/identity/culture through Zionist settler colonialism.” This is the same messaging currently heard at pro-Hamas rallies being held throughout America. Where are they learning this? K-12 ethnic studies is one of those places. Such ethnic studies courses are scheduled to become mandatory graduation requirements in CA high schools in the very near future How do you think these schools are teaching about the current war Israel forced to fight against Palestinians terrorists after the atrocities they committed?