This morning we met with one of the theology teachers to talk about the presence of antisemitic slurs at our sons' Catholic high school. I think it went well. The teacher was not surprised to hear about our concern. "I just gave somebody a detention for that," he said. The kid pushed back, apparently, arguing that he didn't deserve a detention ("there's nothing wrong with saying that!") (for real, he said that to a teacher) (in the year 2017) (can you even?) (my even-er is fried), so the teacher was also not surprised to hear that our son's efforts to make it stop hadn't gone anywhere. On the plus side, he said the kid in question was in a group of 5 other kids at the time, all of whom winced and said, "You can't say that!"
In the car afterward I said to my husband that it seemed serendipitous that this teacher had just seen firsthand the very same issue and the very same resistance that have been worrying us. "I think you mean horrifying," said Elwood, which is also true. But it's a serendipitous kind of horrifying, because the theology teacher is going to talk to the rest of the theology department and to the principal today, and say, "How can we address this problem that I myself have observed with my own eyes and ears?" And maybe his detention write-up will satisfy part of the principal's need to know who exactly is saying this stuff.
We talked with the teacher for about 20 minutes, and he mentioned a lot of the same issues that have been weighing on me. He tells his students about Church teaching on social justice and preferential love for the poor, and hears "but they didn't earn it!" He is married to a woman whose grandfather immigrated from Mexico, and so immigration questions have particular resonance for them. I said, "There are some pockets of alt-right nastiness here that concern us," and he nodded in agreement. "Before the election..." he began, and trailed off, shaking his head. We talked about possible responses together. (And oh, you guys, thank you for your comments here! I pulled some of my suggestions straight out of your comments.) This teacher wants to do the right thing here, I am certain. I don't know what will happen from here. I don't know how much influence the school can wield if some kids are getting a steady diet of Breitbart and worse at home. But if they're willing to listen, and willing to try -- that's all we're asking.
This sounds really encouraging to me. And you both speaking up is HUGE.
Also, the student talking back is just ... I can't.
Posted by: mary d | March 16, 2017 at 12:54 PM
So often I read you and wish I could just press "Like". I have no words of wisdom to add, no insights, but I am so glad you're doing this. Silent cheer maybe?
Posted by: Rachel | March 16, 2017 at 04:36 PM
I opened my news reader tonight specifically because I wanted to hear how your meeting had gone. So glad you found a kindred spirit.
In the immediate aftermath of 9/11, I gave a student in a Catholic school detention for using an anti-Islamic slur. He claimed I gave him detention for being a good American. The fact that we have slipped backward to the place where a kid doesn't understand why he's getting a detention for saying anti-Semitic things is disheartening. But there is nothing to do but keep pushing each other forward.
Posted by: Jennifer | March 16, 2017 at 09:29 PM
Will you please post a link of an antisemitic article from Breitbart?
Posted by: Karen | March 17, 2017 at 10:29 AM
I don't spend much time at Breitbart for the same reason I don't spend much time at Addicting Info: I'm not going to give very much of the space in my head to extreme voices, regardless of their affiliation.
I am primarily concerned about the community Breitbart fosters and its self-identification as "the platform for the alt-right," in the words of Steve Bannon. Content analysis of Breitbart's comments over the past 4 years illustrates a clear trend toward more extremist positions. This includes increased antisemitism.
Posted by: Jamie | March 17, 2017 at 12:32 PM
This is referring to the comment section of the blog, where anyone can leave comments. Show me an article, written by a Breitbart writer that is antisemitic, in your mind. If I post an antisemitic comment here that does not make your blog antisemitic, obviously. I can show you 100 different online news agencies that are left leaning with racist comment threads. Please link an antisemitic article. Breitbart is not antisemitic. It is conservative. Period. Steve Bannon is not antisemitic. To call him so, is a slur.
Posted by: Karen | March 17, 2017 at 12:59 PM
One more time: I am explicitly concerned about the comment section at Breitbart, where the site owners have allowed alt-right ugliness to flourish. If you post an antisemitic comment here, I will delete it, because I am responsible for this space. I am quoting Steve Bannon himself about Breitbart being a platform for the alt-right. His words, not mine.
Posted by: Jamie | March 17, 2017 at 01:05 PM
Yeah, Karen, the comment section alone is a reason not to want kids to get a "steady diet of Breitbart," as Jamie put it.
Posted by: bearing | March 17, 2017 at 02:28 PM