Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forums9-year-old activist saves Chicago school, dreams big
When the Chicago Board of Education voted last week to close 50 schools, Marcus Garvey Elementary School was not on the list. Nine-year-old Asean Johnson is one of the reasons why; his fiery speeches against Mayor Rahm Emanuels plan to gut public education have earned him widespread admiration and more than a few suggestions that he should replace Emanuel in City Hall.
As cities all over the United States close primarily minority schools, money flows to voucher programs and charter schools, and as teachers unions face repeated attacks, it is easy to get discouraged about the state of public education. Johnson and his mother Shoneice Reynolds joined Melissa Harris-Perry on Sunday to talk about why he got involved in the fight against the Chicago Public Schools plan, and he insisted that the situation is not as dire as Mayor Emanuel and CPS CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett have argued it is.
Students of all ages have played a huge role in protests against school closings. Thousands of students walked out of school in Philadelphia on May 17 and marched to the school district headquarters. Philadelphia is set to close 23 schools, all of which are located in black and Latino parts of the city.
Asean Johnson doesnt plan to stop fighting to protect public education. As he told Melissa, when hes the mayor, he wants to support businesses that invest in communities. One corporation he wont welcome? Walmart. They dont give back, Johnson told Harris-Perry.
http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/05/26/9-year-old-activist-saves-school-dreams-big/
As cities all over the United States close primarily minority schools, money flows to voucher programs and charter schools, and as teachers unions face repeated attacks, it is easy to get discouraged about the state of public education. Johnson and his mother Shoneice Reynolds joined Melissa Harris-Perry on Sunday to talk about why he got involved in the fight against the Chicago Public Schools plan, and he insisted that the situation is not as dire as Mayor Emanuel and CPS CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett have argued it is.
Students of all ages have played a huge role in protests against school closings. Thousands of students walked out of school in Philadelphia on May 17 and marched to the school district headquarters. Philadelphia is set to close 23 schools, all of which are located in black and Latino parts of the city.
Asean Johnson doesnt plan to stop fighting to protect public education. As he told Melissa, when hes the mayor, he wants to support businesses that invest in communities. One corporation he wont welcome? Walmart. They dont give back, Johnson told Harris-Perry.
http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/05/26/9-year-old-activist-saves-school-dreams-big/
Watch the vid. If you're not impressed by this young man, then nothing will impress you.
InfoView thread info, including edit history
TrashPut this thread in your Trash Can (My DU » Trash Can)
BookmarkAdd this thread to your Bookmarks (My DU » Bookmarks)
4 replies, 1267 views
ShareGet links to this post and/or share on social media
AlertAlert this post for a rule violation
PowersThere are no powers you can use on this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
ReplyReply to this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
Rec (14)
ReplyReply to this post
4 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
9-year-old activist saves Chicago school, dreams big (Original Post)
MrScorpio
May 2013
OP
elleng
(131,076 posts)1. A GREAT kid,
moving on to President in 20 years!
And what a pleased mother he has!
HiPointDem
(20,729 posts)2. saw it before. impressive speaking abilities for such a young kid.
ismnotwasm
(41,999 posts)3. K&R
Wonderful young man
SunSeeker
(51,662 posts)4. Kid's got some chops! And so cute.
He definitely has speaking talent and is very bright. And handsome on top of all that. He should go into politics or acting. If there was a level playing field, there would be no doubt he was going places.