Thoughts on a Two Day Teach In

I woke this morning thinking about the 2 Day Teach in (#ScholarStrike) and I was remembering that in my lifetime I am no stranger to protest.  The Korean War in the 1950’s (1950 – 1953) was part of the news when I was in my early teens.  I was 10 years old when it started, 13 when it finished.

The Sexual Revolution of the 1960’s is now seen as a period of profound societal change.  I was only marginally aware of it and that because some of my friends moved to California.  I only knew second and third hand about that movement.  I followed it in Canadian newspapers, which is at least one degree away from the original reporting.

I am often taking a break to look at the world.

Vietnam and the walk outs from college and university campuses in the 1970’s happened when I was in my 30’s.  By now the newspapers were giving fuller reports about protests, and of course we had news on the TV.  And I came to know some of the draft dodgers since some of them moved to Alberta.

I missed the Stonewall Riots in the 1990’s (originating in the Stonewall Gay Bar in NYC).  Absolutely missed it.  I had to have a going-back-to-school year as an adult to hear about it.

I was thinking about all of this after listening to the first day of the Scholar Strike yesterday.  I decided to be there as first-hand as COVID will allow.

Bonnie and I could only get in 3 of the 6 sessions.  I did take 6 pages of notes, which was not required, should anyone be afraid of watching it today by my reporting. I did read "Teleology on the Rocks" from Patricia J Williams's The Alchemy of Race and Rights: Diary of a Law Professor where she talks about her (black) sense of being invisible at Harvard in the 1990’s – so invisibility is not a new topic.  Just an invisible one.  And that was about it for pre -"Two Day Teach In" reading.

As Bonnie and I wrapped up the evening, checking in with each other about what we had heard, I was thinking as well about the gift of going to the conference:

1.     I got to watch these panel sessions from the comfort of my own dining room table, pens and paper spread in front of me, a cold drink of water there and at times a delicious bowl of Peanut Butter Cup & Chocolate ice-cream.

2.     Since the sessions were streamed, I could watch them at times that were convenient to me.

3.     If there was a telephone call or a knock at the door, I could put the conference on pause.

4.     The issues being addressed are current with the thinking of my grandchildren.  I am getting to see what is on their minds, and on the minds of their peers and their teachers.

5.     I am attending this conference at no extra cost.  I know the hidden costs.  A person has to have access to the internet and a device from which to watch – but I have those at my home, whether I watch or not.

6.     I am often looking back on my life to see if I can say I have lived it without regret.  And if not, I try to  name that regret.  One is that I would like to have added to my life, learning more about my own country.  So yesterday and potentially today I can drop "learning more about Canada" right into that bucket list, though I think there is either a hole in the bucket, or the bucket is much larger than I had previously thought.

Just my thoughts for the day.

Arta