The Iris Flowers
June 25–30, Amherst, MA USA
Seasonal Memoir #11
We are fully ensconced in repat life in the US. I wouldn’t say we’re in a groove, but our routines are pretty fixed. Morning walks for coffee, mind-numbing errands, taking kids to work or events, meals together, an evening walk with Kiwi, and closing with Netflix. Pretty solid existence, I must say.
This journal entry will capture a few of the things worth mentioning:
- We walked back in the dark from Amherst center after dinner with friends. We cut through the Amherst College campus, and headed down the rail trail. It was pitch black out, which helped us block out of our minds all the bugs flying around us. But it were the fireflies that caught our attention, especially when we passed by an open field. Hundreds (likely thousands) of Lampyridae visible, an orchestra of moving light as they did their mating waltz. Chaos theory would tell us there would be an underlying pattern to the fireflies’ movement that night, but we were not in the position to posit that. Nevertheless, several feelings arose: Beautiful. Sublime. Peaceful. Wonderful.
- My case of poison ivy hit me with a vengeance. I’m a mess, with my whole left side covered, my left arm, and then spots all over. I really made the most out of getting it! We went back and found the incriminating spot in the yard. I was so careless, weeding without gloves or long sleeves, or even proper shoes. By the time I realized I had it, it was too late. And the residual urushiol oils must be all over the house, because new rashes keep showing up. Argh! First-world problems, of course.
- Zach’s getting back into soccer, and it’s been fun to watch him in the regional summer soccer league, where he’s playing for Amherst. Good group of boys, and a good vibe. And he’s holding his own! It’s a great opportunity for him to integrate into the community and make some friends before the school year starts. He’s the exotic kid from Dubai, which is comical to us.
- Not sure how I feel about the evolution of tip culture in the U.S. I would routinely give 20%, even in Dubai (where only 10% would make them happy). Back in America, I feel like 25% is the minimum to avoid getting the stink eye. What surprised me, however, was the tip culture when you order something like coffee from a counter and then they hand it to you at the counter. They will turn the screen around and give you the choice of 15%, 18%, or 20%. For what? This seems like a stretch. C’est la vie, I guess. Just wondering where it’s all going, and why it’s on the consumer’s back to properly compensate service industry employees, who certainly deserve a livable wage and are not getting it.
- It’s interesting to watch and tricky to navigate across the spectrum of pandemic behaviors, where on one end you have folks acting as if the pandemic is over (and risk is gone), and on the other end you have people practicing hygiene theatre (e.g. wearing masks while biking). You get the sense that most people are done with Covid-19 in their lives, and while experts are warning about another spike due to the delta-variant, I really can’t imagine folks accepting a return of the restrictions. We continue to wear masks indoors, partly at least, and will likely fall into a behavioral pattern like they have had for a long time in Asia, where you wear a mask if you are feeling ill yourself (to protect others). Wondering what schools will be like in the fall. We must fully open them up, even if there are some precautions we take.
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Essay Alert!
What I learned teaching critical race theory to American teenagers overseas
I have taught critical race theory (CRT) for the past ten years in three different overseas American schools, and that experience has solidified my unequivocal belief that teaching diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are fundamental to an effective liberal arts education, still very relevant in preparing our youth for the world they will inherit.
Despite growing backlash abroad and at home, my key observation is this:
A teenager growing up overseas as an expat, though generally quite culturally competent, is wholly unprepared to return to the United States, where they will have to navigate in a society still coming to grips with its differences, and especially its historical baggage over racism. If the person returning is “of color”, he is not aware that he will be raced in America. If that person is White, she is ignorant of the impact she will have as an ally (positive) or as a microaggressor (negative).
CRT presents a balancing perspective to the sanitized, biased viewpoint textbooks have provided our youth for generations. Therefore, teaching CRT provides a positive step toward the ultimate goal: a just society rooted in equal opportunity. Where better than our schoolhouses to address this objective?
Race and ethnicity in America is either a negative or a positive doing, respectively. It can never be neutral. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun wrote in the landmark Bakke case, “In order to get beyond racism, we must first take account of race.” That’s intuitive.
My own experience with critical race theory traces back to a transformative period early in my career as a school leader. As one of the original members of METCO (busing students from Boston into the suburbs), our community grappled with the challenges our students of color faced each and every day. (Watch my TEDx talk about the day our community was canvassed by the KKK.) A doctorate at the Lynch School of Education at Boston College reinforced these lessons.
From there, in moving overseas to raise our biracial children outside of the American bubble, we were surprised to see how little conversation there was about race, culture, and social justice, even in such a diverse city like London. President Obama, who himself taught topics in race and society at the University of Chicago Law School, had just been elected, and the prevailing attitude (among many Whites, at least) was that we were finally post-racial. The case was closed on racial injustice. History was just that: history. As I launched my own high school course titled “Race, Culture, and Human Rights”, I fought to raise awareness on the idea that we were not yet post-racial, but instead still living in a society where bias was systemic, where overt bigotry had simply gone underground. The school and my students were receptive. Students continued to enroll in the course.
In the ten years I have taught CRT from an ally perspective, there has been a steady supply of highly publicized racial incidents that prove why such a course is both necessary for our youth and also relevant for our society. In exploring topics such as privilege, prejudice, racism, ethnicity, culture, and informed action with my students, I have made several observations about this generation, which gives me hope and confidence that our future will indeed be positive:
- They don’t carry the baggage that we do, when it comes to skin color and stereotypes, or America’s history of oppression of certain groups. They are sponges, soaking in the big ideas presented to them, but doing so with appropriately-skeptical minds.
- But these “sponges” nevertheless carry with them prejudices, and have not been immune to the influence of media, family beliefs, or experiences. These biases must be unpacked and debunked, and it’s not easy to do so even though they are young.
- They resist labels and being labeled. It vexes them why we adults try to put everyone into neat little boxes. They check the ethnicity box on the SAT, but don’t understand why it’s even there in the first place (I tend to agree). Moreso, many in this generation don’t fit nicely into the categories presented to them. Ignoring these labels becomes a thing of pride.
- Skin color is not a big deal to them, and is not even important in their world. They puzzle as to why the adults around them are so caught up in these superficial differences among us.
- Economic disparity is more troubling to them than race. A solid majority of my students support affirmative action in undergraduate admissions when it comes to providing opportunities for students coming from households living in poverty, while at the same time arguing vehemently that skin color should not be a plus-factor for admissions.
- They are clueless about their own privilege, especially unearned white privilege, but are receptive to becoming aware of how they can leverage privilege to help uplift others who don’t have it.
- They love culture, and are fascinated by it. The explorer Wade Davis calls culture “humanity’s greatest legacy”. Once students come to grips with race and our differences, they relish a deep dive into celebrating our cultural uniquenesses.
- They are not sure how to react to systemic racism. They can feel as helpless in stemming institutional discrimination as we do.
- Nevertheless, this generation is passionate about making a positive impact on the world, and now that they are informed, they are ready to act. The creativity I witness after providing them some suggestions gives me tremendous hope for our future.
Let’s be clear. Teaching critical race theory in schools is not about creating a generation of woke young adults. It is about awareness, of oneself and of the society one lives in. Nor is CRT about infusing guilt onto young people, who have not created the world they live in. Furthermore, guilt-offsetting behavior by well-meaning adults through overcompensating for injustices, real or imagined, only makes the problem worse, and fosters divide. It’s simply time to incorporate critical race theory into our schools’ curriculum, for the express benefit of our youth, so they can be active and discerning citizens. Isn’t that a fundamental purpose of education?
