A few years back, a Jesuit brother named Rick Curry appeared on Sara Moulton’s cooking show to bake some bread. Brother Rick (if I may call him that) wrote a book called The Secrets of Jesuit Breadmaking. I don’t really remember what Sara and Brother Rick baked that day, but I do remember something that resonated with me about Brother Rick’s approach to bread, a food about as close to perfect as I can imagine. After all these years of eating bread, I thought it might be a good time to start baking some. The Secrets of Jesuit Breadmaking came back to mind.
I never knew much about the Jesuits, an order of Brothers founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola in 1534 to serve through practical actions or “service without power.” Turns out that breadmaking fits squarely in their artisanal tradition. When Brother Rick bakes bread, he also does something uniquely Jesuit: he makes an Examen of Conscience. As Brother Rick describes it, an Examen of Conscience is part of a larger self-examination in which a Jesuit checks his progress toward a greater union with God and better service to others.
Brother Rick tells us that back in St. Ignatius’ day, the Examen of Conscience was a radical idea because it was an individual conversation with God and self. Ignatius believed that each of us should have intimate conversations with God, from the heart, and if the prayer did not lead to service of others, it was a false prayer. Before preaching, Ignatius’ job was to feed the poor. The first house of the Jesuits in Rome was a bread distribution center.
Since I find cooking to be creative and meditative (provided the conditions are right), combining breadmaking and self-reflection makes sense to me. I haven’t picked a recipe yet—Brother’s Bread? Basic Italian? Honey Whole Wheat?—but I have sifted out the secular prescriptions of the Examen as described by Brother Rick. After I carefully read the recipe but before I gather my ingredients, I’ll name the good things that have come into my life in the last 24 hours. As I mix the dough and it begins to rise, I’ll have plenty of time to think about my recent actions, omissions, thoughts, and desires, and what those tell me about myself in relation to others. I’ll ask myself: What have I done for someone else? Do I harbor resentment? Have I held my tongue? Have I said anything hurtful? Have I been kind? Am I part of the problem or part of the solution? And as the smell of baking bread fills the kitchen, I’ll be thankful. That should be the easy part.
Brother Rick says to resist the temptation to eat bread while it’s hot. Cooling lets moisture evaporate, which improves both flavor and texture. Plus you need to look at your work, assess how it turned out, and figure out what you can do better next time.
If after thoughtful reflection and patient self-restraint there is bread, I think I can do this.
(And speaking of bread—I can’t stop myself—check out the delicious and healthful recipes at SavvyBaker.com, the blog of Liesl Bohan and in a supporting role her husband Matt, an amazing illustrator and photographer with whom I had the sincere pleasure of working years back.)
February 15th, 2011
I’m on a Mission from Good (or so I tell myself, having no idea what the unintended consequences and good-deed punishments will be) to improve the state of school food in my district. That includes the school lunch program, food served at school events and celebrations, vending, and even what gets packed at home (a girl can dream). [While you wait with bated breath (whatever that is) for the details (future post), here’s an inspiring document called Rethinking School Lunch from the Center for Eco-Literacy to keep you on topic.]
Coincident with this is my 5-year-old son’s absolute obsession with Lunchables (a Mission from Not So Good). See, his classmate—let’s call him Joe—brings one to school every day. Kai has interviewed Joe about lunch, and Joe said that Lunchables are the only thing he likes. I figure with about 180 school days and at $3.00 or so a pop, that’s about $540 per school year, not including Lunchables eaten on weekends and holidays. (Okay, yeah, I know the price because I’ve bought a Lunchable or three just to prove to my son that he wouldn’t even like them. Okay, yeah, he likes them. They’re engineered that way. But let’s get back to that laser focus on Joe and his Lunchable lunch.)
Let’s suppose Joe chooses the Extra Cheesy Pizza Lunchable. Join me on a journey inside the box… “…a crust made with whole-grain, Kraft Mozzarella and Tombstone pizza sauce. Includes Airheads® and a Capri Sun 100% Fruit Juice.” Aside from the brand blitz and the Airheads, perhaps not the very worst lunch on the planet (I read “whole-grain,” didn’t I?). Now, let’s take a squint at some of the ingredients behind the brand names: MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, GUAR GUM, CARBOXYMETHYLCELLULOSE, DATEM, CALCIUM PROPIONATE, SODIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE, XANTHAN GUM, POTASSIUM SORBATE AS A PRESERVATIVE, SORBIC ACID AS A PRESERVATIVE, APOCAROTENAL (COLOR), MALTODEXTRIN, DEXTROSE, FOOD STARCH MODIFIED (CORN), PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED SOYBEAN OIL, ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, BLUE 1.
I bet Joe never realized his pizza and juice could double as a chemistry kit and vocabulary-builder. (All that educational potential must be what’s attracting my son.)
Like Michael Pollan says, if your great-grandmother (assuming she’s over 40) wouldn’t recognize these ingredients as food, they’re not. And if a food has ingredients that are unfamiliar, unpronounceable, and/or more than five in number, you might want to reconsider. While you’re at it, stay away from high-fructose corn syrup.
Any CARBOXYMETHYLCELLULOSE* lobbyists out there from the industrial food industry who beg to differ?
*Also used in K-Y Jelly, toothpaste, laxatives, diet pills, water-based paints, and various paper products, among other things. Who’s hungry?!
May 30th, 2009
Since the start of this school year—grades K & 3 for my kids—I’ve been busy working with a team of gorgeously green co-conspirators to bring principles of sustainability and social responsibility to our school, school district, and town.
Last school year, our merry band worked under the radar and got a few things done…green and Fair Trade merchandise at our holiday boutique, a family swap, and a green after-school class for 1st-3rd graders.
This year, after proving we’re willing to work hard and make fun/useful things happen, we became an official PTO committee, and were able to help do more, including school recycling, student green club, reusable bag fundraiser, book swap, expanded green & Fair Trade holiday boutique tables + alternative gifts (gifts of time, Heifer International donations), green game show family event, healthy bake sale, 2nd family swap (see flyer PDF), and steps toward lunchroom waste reduction.
At the same time, our Mayor and Board of Education independently established green committees. Under our Mayor’s green initiative, we’re planning an eco-fair for September 2009 and pursuing Sustainable Jersey certification, which is a terrific framework for defining, focusing, and measuring your town-wide efforts at sustainability.
One of Sustainable Jersey’s creators, Fred Profeta, former Mayor of Maplewood and currently that town’s Deputy Mayor for the Environment, recently spoke at a Nutley Community Preservation Partnership meeting. Beside his incredible knowledge of and experience in achieving sustainability, Mr. Profeta brought a simple message that every individual effort, no matter how small, contributes meaningfully to our goals. As more of us believe this in earnest, I think we have a chance of getting somewhere.
Meanwhile, our Board of Ed green committee has been exploring and planning the implementation of energy savings and curricula, better school food and wellness education, and all kinds of ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle as a district.
If you’re wondering how to get started in your school, here are some basic steps for getting your green efforts underway:
1. Find like-minded parents (or at least one!) to form a small group interested in starting some new green initiatives and influencing existing PTO (and ultimately, school) activities with a green perspective.
2. Brainstorm ideas and socialize with your PTO leadership and principal. Start small—whatever you can accomplish with as few as two of you—and build on your successes.
3. Make friends with your maintenance staff. Their support is critical to a lot of the initiatives you may want to implement. With your principal, gather their input. Always clean/straighten after your events; your consideration and respect will go a long way.
4. Look to establish an official PTO green committee so your efforts are sanctioned and become part of official PTO business.
5. Look to establish a teacher-run club to involve students as much as possible. As the PTO green committee (official or unofficial), provide support for club activities and events. Students in this group can become the leaders in influencing their peers, teachers, and parents. They’re also great at generating creative ideas and making them happen (with teacher and parent support).
6. Find out what other schools have done/are doing, and participate in (or at least communicate with) any town-wide green efforts. Exchange your ideas, successes, and challenges so you can all learn from each other. Every initiative is an opportunity to involve students, raise awareness, and change habits in the broader school community.
May 21st, 2009
While reading a recent New York Times article called “Woman to Woman, Online,” I learned that women are primarily interested in four things: fashion, beauty, celebrities, and love life. After including current events and failing to attract interest, Yahoo’s Shine decided to stick with lifestyle and entertainment content. Condé Nast magazine Jane died trying, shutting down in July 2007 due to lack of advertising revenue. Meanwhile, mommy blogger Heather Armstrong’s 850,000 readers (her site is Dooce.com) can’t get enough of her daughter’s obsession with pancakes or pictures of her new shower curtain. Apparently, major advertisers approve, showing their love with the Benjamins, so much so that both Armstrong and her husband quit their day jobs. That’s a lotta pancakes.
Since first and foremost I would like to please my reader (although I think he might be a man; I’m not really sure), instead of writing about the latest Pew Commission Report on Industrial Farm Animal Production or talking about Ayaan Hirsi Ali’s book Infidel, I might just treat you to a gripping account of my kids’ relationship with French toast sticks and a picture of my shower curtain (sorry about the mildew stains). Before I get to those features, here are some other lifestyle tips I’d like to share, just in time for back-to-school (are you there, J. C. Penney? it’s me, Tara).
The Laptop Lunch Box
Come on, you know you’ve eyed Lunchables with envy for their convenience as your kids sing their siren song of false promises if you’ll let them try it just this once. I’m not gonna claim that a Laptop Lunch Box will save you that kind of time, but it will help you feel virtuous as you pack it with nutritional goodness and reduce waste. If your shower curtain looks anything like mine, your kids will love it, too. Visit: LaptopLunches.com
The School Assembly
I’ll admit that Keith Torgan & Barbara Siesel were at my house for brunch the other day, so I’m not unbiased, but you won’t be sorry if you help convince your principal and PTA/O to bring Flute Sweets & Tickletoons for a performance of Green Golly & Her Golden Flute to your school this year. Visit: TugboatMusic.com
The Family Swap
No, I’m not suggesting you go live in a trailer park while the Clampetts make themselves comfortable on your Greenwich sofa from Pottery Barn. This is about getting rid of all that extra stuff you thought you needed when you bought it but now realize you don’t (I promise this won’t happen to your Laptop Lunch Boxes). My pal Michelle & I organized a swap at our daugthers’ elementary school this past spring. It was a great community-building event, helped promote the 3Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle), and got my 4-year-old son the mother lode of wooden train tracks absolutely free. For the highlights, see the coverage here: NJHometown.com
That’s all for this newly relevant edition of Global Bakeshop. Y’all come back now, ya hear?
August 19th, 2008
I’m close to having replaced the bulk of our standard household and personal care products with green alternatives. As I reach my stride in green pride, I feel almost heady with freedom from cruelty, excess packaging, and harmful ingredients for people and planet. I read and nearly weep: “No animal testing or animal ingredients,” “No parabens or lauryl/laureth sulfate,” “Pure, natural, organic,” “Biodegradable.” I practically want to tattoo the leaping bunny and the recycling symbol on my body. But instead of asking Kat Von D to pencil me in (or on me), it looks like I have to take a page from Bon Qui Qui’s book and call secooridy instead.
According to a recent study by the Organic Consumers Association (OCA), some products from my favorite brands—Jason, Alba, Seventh Generation, Ecover, and others—contain a carcinogenic contaminant called 1,4-dioxane, a byproduct of petrochemicals used in manufacturing. You won’t find 1,4-dioxane on the label. Instead, the OCA advises, look for ingredients with the following in their names: myreth, oleth, laureth, ceteareth, any other eth, PEG, polyethylene, polyethylene glycol, polyoxyethylene, or oxynol. Apparently, claims of “organic” or “certified organic” provide consumers with no guarantees. Instead, says the OCA, “look for products that are certified under the USDA National Organic Program (or a similar German program) and products that bear the ‘USDA Organic’ seal.”
In buying green, consumers are showing a genuine desire to do the right thing, and telling companies that we want safe, effective products that are also environmentally responsible and humane. This is not too much to ask. Unfortunately, whether by design or through negligence (which is it?*), companies that put marketing claims on their packaging that aren’t fully substantiated breach our trust. It feels like the OCA’s findings bring to light deliberate deception, and that does not make me feel the love I was way too quick to associate with bottles of shampoo, body lotion, and dishwashing liquid.
Still, I’m not ready to give up on green or even the companies in the report. I’ll just sharpen my label-reading skills and stop assuming that a brand with a cute koala or a moving mantra ultimately has all my interests at heart. I should’ve known that, as with all new love, the honeymoon had to end some time. Here’s hoping that our future together will be based on honesty, mutual respect, and a commitment to the welfare of the family.
*Seventh Generation seemed to respond thoughtfully to the findings, but this bad note still creates some dissonance for me. I couldn’t find anything on Hain Celestial’s website responding to the report, but the L.A. Times coverage included this quote from the company’s director of corporate consumer relations: “We are committed to selling products without detectable levels of 1,4-dioxane . . . and will review all formulations accordingly.”
April 8th, 2008
When I was a kid, we used to go to the Englishtown flea market, located on a vast expanse of dirt or mud (depending on the weather) in suburban-rural Englishtown, NJ. We’d get on the road around 4:30 a.m. and take the hour’s drive to buy old and new stuff you didn’t much find anywhere else, at least not all in one place.
This was in the 70s and early 80s, before the dawn of the big-box store and crazy-mad access to cheap goods of all sorts. Englishtown was a ritual and an adventure. We’d come home with dollhouse miniatures and tomato plants, underwear and antiques, purses and even once, an Irish Setter puppy.
Besides the shopping, we’d eat: old-fashioneds from (now defunct) Mickey’s Donut Land (en route—Route 18, to be exact), Italian sausage sandwiches, hand-cut French fries with vinegar, homemade lemonade, burritos, crumb cake, and hot dogs, all before the people at home had had their morning coffee.
Today, I can buy pretty much whatever I want and then some within a 10-mile radius of my house. I never thought about how that happened until pretty recently. I have to admit, walking into Target, I always felt a little of that old Englishtown thrill anticipating the surprises and bargains (if not the food). I never really wondered how a pillow could cost just $4. I never stopped to ask how, where, or by whom something was made. It was all there, brand new, standing at attention, just waiting for me.
So why do I refer to the thrill in the past tense with Target and so much more still a mere mile from my house? Like a loose piece of yarn in a sweater, if you start to tug at it, it’s bound to unravel.
My little reality check turned obsession began with The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan (see my 11/15/07 blog post). Upshot: Our system of industrial food production is harmful to people, animals, and the environment, but lucrative to corporate interests. Uh-oh.
This got me thinking very seriously about animal welfare, the environment, and corporate greed. Time to get the kids involved! My 7-year-old daughter and I read Ingrid Newkirk’s 50 Awesome Ways Kids Can Help Animals: Fun and Easy Ways to Be a Kind Kid. This made me aware of, among other things, non-mandatory animal testing of so many of our household and personal care products especially, including everything from sandwich bags to dental floss to mascara. This is testing that no regulatory body requires, but that companies conduct anyway, I’m assuming out of habit (it’s part of business as usual) and to ensure the safety of its customers (at least that’s what they’ll tell you if you ask them). I followed up with a related Ingrid Newkirk book: Making Kind Choices: Everyday Ways to Enhance Your Life Through Earth- and Animal-Friendly Living.
And then:
Worldchanging: A User’s Guide for the 21st Century by Alex Steffen
An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore
The Consumer’s Guide to Effective Environmental Choices: Practical Advice from the Union of Concerned Scientists by Michael Brower and Warren Leon, Union of Concerned Scientists
The World Without Us by Alan Weisman
Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World by Bill Clinton
Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things by William McDonough and Michael Braungart
The Down-to-Earth Guide to Global Warming by Laurie David and Cambria Gordon
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver, Camille Kingsolver, and Steven L. Hopp
Plus numerous web resources on how to live while doing your best not to trample human rights, poison yourself, destroy the environment, or use animals in a prodigious and irresponsible manner. Here’s just one:
Co-op America: Economic Action for a Just Planet
After a lifetime of accepting the status quo, never really wanting to know what I feared I couldn’t change, I’m happy to report that the thrill is back. Yes, I’m thrilled to find my way to the truth, reckon with it, and learn how to make responsible choices. I’m only a beginner in this process, but I now believe that the way my little family lives in this world can be more positive than negative in its impact. Unlike the excitement of purchasing cheap goods in reckless ignorance of the sacrifices that made them possible, this is a genuine thrill that keeps on thrilling.
Now if I could just get a Mickey’s old-fashioned with that…
December 21st, 2007
You can’t read The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan and expect to go on with your life, shopping and eating like it never happened. The cow is out of the CAFO (confined animal feeding operation), or so we hope.
Pollan eloquently exposes the unconscionable treatment of animals, including us, as it happens, in the production, marketing, and consumption of what we’ve come to call “food.” I use this term loosely, as do the many agribusinesses and “food” conglomerates who want you to believe, for the sake of business as usual, that cows eat corn and ingredients like high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) are wholesome and natural. (The only thing pure about HFCS may be its evil.)
Any one of the reasons why we all need to change how and what we eat is sufficient; the combined argument is airtight. If the utterly heinous treatment of animals doesn’t get your goat, maybe shameless corporate profiteering, public deception, or the obesity epidemic will.
In “Unhappy Meals” (New York Times, January 28, 2007), Pollan looks in particular at the impact on human health of processed foods, and has some sage advice on what to do about it. “Eat food” is his first suggestion, which is deceptively simple, since most of us aren’t sure what that even means anymore. Here’s something concrete to take to the market (trading “super” for “farmer’s” will solve the problem instantly): “Especially avoid food products containing ingredients that are a) unfamiliar, b) unpronounceable c) more than five in number — or that contain high-fructose corn syrup. None of these characteristics are necessarily harmful in and of themselves, but all of them are reliable markers for foods that have been highly processed.”
You might think that eating organic is an easy answer, but organic farming and food distribution on an industrial scale still use up our rapidly diminishing supply of fossil fuel at an alarming rate. Plus, your organic milk and “free-range” chicken from large-scale operations still come from animals whose lives are very much like those of their traditional counterparts. Today’s organic standards as implemented on an industrial scale do something for the healthfulness of the food produced, but little for the animals used in the process, or the overall sustainability in terms of energy consumption.
A good part of the answer lies in healthful, sustainable local food sources. Pollan’s blog has some great suggestions for finding options in your area (see the May 21, 2006 post “Food From a Farm Near Your”) and will also keep you thinking about and acting on this issue in general.
So pass the locally grown peas at your table and declare the food fight on!
July 10th, 2007
I recently read a great article in New York Magazine called “Some Dark Thoughts on Happiness” by Jennifer Senior. The article explores lifestyles and characteristics of the unhappy, aspiring happy, and happy happy as revealed by research and anecdote.
Happy is a funny word. The more you say it, the weirder it gets. Not unlike the pursuit of happiness. Turns out that the more we try to make ourselves happy through acquisitions and achievements, the more disappointed we may become. People who think it’s the next thing they do or get that’s going to bring them fulfillment have pretty much mistaken the destination for the journey. Similarly, thinking that the next heartbreak or challenge we overcome will be our last, that the sun will come out tomorrow, can be a way to get through the day, but isn’t a strategy with legs either.
The sheer number of possibilities and choices we face is a contributing factor in our ongoing sense that there’s always something better out there. Psychologist Barry Schwartz calls this the “paradox of choice,” which he explores in detail in his book by the same name (on my must-read list). In one study, a Columbia University researcher set out 6 jars of jam in a gourmet shop, offering sampling customers a dollar off their favorite one. Another day, there were 24 jams to taste with the same offer. While more people sampled when there were 24 choices, only 3% purchased, while 30% bought jam when there were only 6 to try. Daily life, with the proliferation of options at every turn, feels a lot more like 24 jars.
We also have the sense that other people are happier than we are (I also think everyone is older than I am, but more and more, that’s proving not to be true either). Take A-list actors who want to become singers and rock stars who want to become actors. I suspect it’s not just about fully realizing all of your potential so much as figuring the other guy made a better, happier career choice. And your perception doesn’t shift by knowing he thinks the same of you.
A lot of our ability to be happy without much muss and fuss is genetic. In The Happiness Hypothesis, author Jonathan Haidt talks about winning the “cortical lottery” or not. Still, besides your genetic lot in life, complaining also seems like a terrible bad habit, something we do to fill space when we don’t know what else to do with ourselves. It reminds me of Seinfeld’s George Costanza who was most successful when he did the exact opposite of what his instincts told him to do. Maybe the chronically kvetchy should just pretend to be happy, to see the bright side, to do something good for someone else, to say some words of appreciation each time the urge to complain comes on. Then maybe, just maybe, the feelings will follow. Haidt points to meditation, cognitive therapy, or for a quicker if more fraught solution, Prozac.
The discipline of “positive psychology,” formalized by Dr. Martin Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania, offers this happiness formula: Happiness=Biological Set Point + Conditions of Your Life + Voluntary Activities You Do (H=S+C+V). In this equation, there are things we can each do to improve our sense of well-being, genetics aside. In the “conditions of your life” department, as Haidt describes, are reducing noise, shortening your commute, having a sense of control, feeling good about your appearance, and having good relationships. In terms of “voluntary activities that you do,” the key is to find your strengths and regularly apply them.
Short of learning to live like Buddha with no worldly attachments, these are positive steps anyone can take. Kvetches, garden-variety depressives, and pessimists might not choose to see it that way. They’ve probably always hated math anyway.
September 26th, 2006
I used to like to give advice. No problem too big or small. I had a story, encouraging words, answers. I imagined myself the future host of a radio call-in show, helping the angst-ridden with my compassion and insight. Other people’s problems seemed so easy to solve.
Why am I so invested in other people’s successes and failures? What’s in it for me?
I think women are taught that it’s better to give than to receive. We feel duty-bound to fix things for others, to make everything alright. Unfortunately, this trap can disable rather than empower the people we are trying to help, put us in the cross-hairs of blame, shift the focus off us, and take time and energy away from our true responsibilities.
It’s hard to kick a habit. When someone talks to me about a problem, I start to feel the optimism of the gambler, placing just one more bet in the hopes of that elusive pay-off. I can feel it in my bones—this next one will be a winner. My ears perk, my gaze fixes, my mind sorts options.
But giving advice and investing in the outcome are dangerous habits. Like telling a secret you’ve promised to keep, the satisfaction is fleeting while the risk of retribution persists.
This is not to say that you can’t give responsibly. Instead of thinking, “How can I help you?,” I’m trying to think, “Will you help yourself? How?” Responsible support can only be offered, not required, and maybe looks something like this:
• Be there. Focus and be present.
• Listen without judgment. Often, all someone needs is a sounding board to figure it out for himself.
• Don’t offer solutions. People don’t do things they don’t want to do anyway.
• Give the boot to anyone who doesn’t assume personal responsibility or thinks he has an unlimited right to your time and attention.
I’m not alone in a penchant for advice, so the flip side of this is learning how to qualify my own sources of support. I’m beginning to discern the advice that I like because it lets me keep doing what I’m doing regardless of what I’m getting, and authentic support that can make meaningful change however difficult to accept.
I see now that input from friends, family, and even perfect strangers might have value, but how I respond to it and what I do with it is my business. If someone expects me to be accountable to him simply because everyone is entitled to his opinion, it’s not ultimately about me and my well-being. That kind of giving is all about the giver.
Take it from me. Or better yet, don’t.
July 5th, 2006
Thanks to my dear pal Scott, I’m reading Lighting the Way by Karenna Gore Schiff. The book profiles lesser known women in history. So far, I’ve learned about Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Mother Jones, Alice Hamilton, and Frances Perkins. Ahead are Virginia Durr, Septima Poinsette Clark, Dolores Huerta, Helen Rodriguez-Trias, and Gretchen Buchenholz.
You may have heard of some of these amazing women, but you probably aren’t sure who they were or what they did (or do). Chances are slim that they came up in your American history class. (In one of my high school history classes, the teacher assigned each student the name of a political figure so he could anonymously read out our grades. When I protested that they were all men, he named me Elizabeth Holtzman, so whenever he called out my grade, everyone knew how I did.)
All of these women were grass-roots activists who were tireless advocates for people—women, children, people of color, immigrants, the poor—who were and still are used by the establishment to fuel profit and maintain the power structure.
If you were taking a history class today, would you learn about these women? I know multiculturalism and diversity have been themes for some time in curriculum standards/development and among educational publishers, but how does it look on the ground in the classroom? What are kids learning about social responsibility and activism? How do they see the fabric of history woven and by whom? Do they understand the role of the individual? How do schools, parents, and communities teach our kids, and more importantly, show them by example how to work for social justice, starting with the way we treat each other every day?
The specific examples of injustice that these nine women fought are vitally important to understand, both unto themselves and as terrifying examples of what people can, have, and continue to do to other people. From lynching to child labor to perilous and exploitive conditions for workers among other crimes…the list is long.
Important laws have been written that protect children, require safety standards and specify working conditions, outlaw segregation, address public health, make an effort to improve conditions for the poor and marginalized, and on and on. Yes, we’ve made strides. But so far, no law has ended exploitation, racism, sexism, discrimination, inequality, hate, violence, greed, corruption. In this, I’m struck by how little has changed.
Fundamental, in-our-bones change is up to all of us, isn’t it? Meantime, what if national policy and corporate strategy, to qualify for implementation, had to meet one simple criterion: “Is this good for children? families? people?” No? Then you can’t do it. Go back and figure it out. I’m positive that corporations don’t have to offer consumers crap to be filthy, stinkin’ rich. We still need stuff. We still have to buy stuff. Why not good-for-us stuff? The profits on good can be plenty huge.
Sure, we’d have some trouble agreeing on the definition of “good,” but that effort could take place through a powerful series of national, local, and one-on-one conversations…Town hall meetings on good. Cabinet meetings on good. Congressional debates on good. Board meetings on good. Strategy sessions on good. Oprah on good. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert on good (definitely, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert on good, not to mention on hilarious—would that have to be separate?). School board meetings on good. Water coolers on good. Parent-teacher meetings on good. Newspaper editorials on good.
This could be good.
May 15th, 2006
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