Re: Birmingham cheating: Artilce #4 - Blaming the Victims

[Anne Nonniemouse <ShopMathEdu@AOL.COM>]

In a message dated 6/17/00 12:22:56 PM Central Daylight Time,
Allen.Flanigan@USPTO.GOV writes:

<< Live voices of the students are best.  If you can get their stories about
 the withdrawal slips to a reporter willing to write them up, or have them
 tell their version of the story in some other public way, that would be
 best.  Your heartfelt explanations could be dismissed by skeptical reporters
 as "anecdotal" or "second hand". >>

Allen:  You raise a valid concern and some good suggestions.
Here's our dilemma:  We have made students available to reporters; however,
we protected their identity.  The reporters did not like that.  I feel an
obligation as an instructor, long time civil rights activist, and parent, to
keep the students identities out of this.  I have seen how ruthless and
vindictive our public school system can be towards our youth so I am not
inclined to turn their names over.  We are trying to get some of the students
back into the schools they were pushed out of (provided a better alternative
program is in place). We have prepared statements from the students and
showed those to the press.  I guess that we will just have to speak in the
students' behalf.  I could not sleep at night if something retaliatory
happened to one of our students who trusted me and spoke publicly.
How do y'all propose we deal with this?
Thanks for your consideration.
Yours, from Birmingham, AL

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