[NLA] COABE plantation tour

[Marguerite Lukes]

Dear Elsa, Janet, Sally et all:

This is a compelling discussion.   I think touring the plantation is not
in itself problematic, but the issues are there and can be viewed
critically. On the one hand I amdisturbed that anyone could take such an
uncritical stance at something that romanticizes slavery, but not really
surprised.   But we have lots of that in our culture and we do not
interrupt every instance of it (from "Miss Saigon" to "Cosmo" to our
current policies on immigrant  detainees).

Funny, I have been corresponding with someone about the issue of being
"Southern" (I am from Kentucky) and have long ago come to the conclusion
that we
white Southerners grow up to be either ardent anti-racists or passive
non-participaters who are defensive about the racist Southern baggage.
Clearly this is a case of the latter.  Question is, what to do.  Ignoring
it smacks of collusion, one of the things that is hardest to interrupt.

 I feel like this is an educational opportunity for everyone at the
conference.   I know from my own background  that there is so much
awkwardness related to feeling like people from the north especially
stereotype Southerners as flaming racists.  The blindness to this issue
and inability to have open dialogue about it only makes it more
entrenched.

I believe that because of the nature of the conference and because we
believe it is important to foster a critical analysis of history and
connect it to the present,
that we should do exactly what Sally and others suggested, namely form a
roundtable to discuss the issues, and go on the tour and ask the hard
questions.    That it is a rare opportunity for a learning experience
that is rich and real.  And ultimately, what the work we do is all about.

Marguerite
--
Marguerite Lukes
Director of Instructional Technology
Literacy Assistance Center
32 Broadway, 10th floor
New York, NY 10004
tel: 212.803.3322
fax: 212.785.3685
mlukes at lacnyc.org
http://www.lacnyc.org



"Ralf St.Clair" wrote:

> I would very much like to support Elsa's position on the plantation
> tour. Last year in Memphis COABE organized a trip to the Nike
> factory, but managed to ignore the possibility of a trip to the Civil
> Rights Museum. It seems to me that this is both a problematic
> exclusion and a unacceptable inclusion. Several of us wrote about
> these choices on our conference evaluations. To find COABE ignoring
> these comments is disappointing but not particularly surprising. In
> some circles COABE's choice of the most expensive possible hotel in a
> given city has become something of a legend.
>
> I worry about COABE's continuing insensitivity to significant
> political issues. This is not a matter of political correctness, but
> of political engagement. The organisation's unwillingness to
> recognise issues of huge importance (historical and contemporary) to
> many learners, such as exploitative working practices and the
> depiction of slavery, is a disgrace. In this kind of case I'm afraid
> I do not mind embarrassing people.
>
> Ralf
> _______________________________________________
> NLA mailing list: NLA at lists.literacytent.org
> http://lists.literacytent.org/mailman/listinfo/nla
> LiteracyTent: web hosting, news, community and goodies for literacy
> http://literacytent.org

--
Marguerite Lukes
Director of Instructional Technology
Literacy Assistance Center
32 Broadway, 10th floor
New York, NY 10004
tel: 212.803.3322
fax: 212.785.3685
mlukes at lacnyc.org
http://www.lacnyc.org


_______________________________________________
NLA mailing list: NLA at lists.literacytent.org
http://lists.literacytent.org/mailman/listinfo/nla
LiteracyTent: web hosting, news, community and goodies for literacy
http://literacytent.org