Thread by @SonjaCherryPaul

1/12 - Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is upon us. So it’s time for my yearly rant to educators about the white-washing and co-opting of King’s “I Have A Dream” speech.

2/12 - Please acknowledge and teach that this speech does not begin with the words “I Have A Dream.”

3/12 - In fact, begin by reading it in its entirety yourself in order to see more and teach more.
npr.org/2010/01/18/122…

4/12 - Teach the pages BEFORE the “I have a dream” section. Even and especially with K-2. They are NOT “too young.” And this is NOT too political. Utilize your teacher expertise and powers to help younger students with big ideas.

5/12 - Do NOT use Pinterest to help you do this. Having kids make white paper doves and hanging them across your classroom is NOT helpful. Do NOT use Dr. King's "I Have A Dream" speech as an opportunity to just talk about peace.

6/12 - Please see the “peace” and “kindness” approach to teaching about Dr. King and his speech as in fact not a dream but a delusion after the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

7/12 - Dr. King and his work was about more than just nonviolence. He was strategic and radical. Anchoring the "I Have A Dream" speech in “peace” and “kindness” is to co-opt Dr. King and his message for your own purposes.

8/12 - Those purposes are to position the environmental factors Dr. King addresses in the BEFORE the “I have a dream” section as past conditions, rather than present ones that we should be talking and teaching about and taking action against.

9/12 - Avoiding a meaningful discussion of the BEFORE the “I have a dream” section of Dr. King's speech is white-washing and presenting students with a version of the truth you are most comfortable with.

10/12 - Instead, see Dr. King's "I Have A Dream" speech as a powerful tool and opportunity to discuss systemic racism and to help students develop racial literacy.

11/12 - Help students to make note of the social, political, and economic conditions Dr. King speaks of.

12/12 - Teach about Dr. King and his” I Have A Dream” speech in ways that help students to: recognize how these conditions persist today, interrogate the institutions of this country, and develop tools to disrupt racism in all of its forms.