Dear Ms. Most Excellent and Sympathetic Teacher,
Since he’s been wearing his Occupy Astoria LIC button to school every day (he smuggled it in, actually, as I’ve been trying to stress that it is politics and we try to keep politics out of school. Has he stopped bad mouthing Bloomberg yet?), I expect you know how much ProtestKid cares about Occupy Wall Street and how passionately committed he is to the values of justice and solidarity it espouses.
You might also be aware that this coming Tuesday, May 1st, is a “Day without the 99%” and Occupy Wall Street is standing in solidarity with other groups nationwide that have called for a General Strike.
I wanted to let you know that I plan on taking ProtestKid with me as we fully participate in the entire day’s events and planned actions. I expect he will be engaged in a self-directed exploration of the history and practice of change-making in the United States. He will have access to oral histories and documents that will further enrich his understanding of politics, history and math.
I believe that participating will not only give him the chance to witness history, but also to stand in solidarity with teachers, police, documented and undocumented workers whose labor has been exploited and dishonored by the establishment for far too long. I believe that taking him this coming Tuesday is as important a civic duty as the many times I have taken him with me to the voting booth.
If you have any questions, please contact me.
Otherwise, please excuse ProtestKid’s absence from school this coming Tuesday, May 1st. He will be otherwise occupied.
Sincerely,
Alia Gee
