My city is building a new elementary school (on the wealthy side of town while they threaten to close neighborhood schools on my side of town because we're in a budget disaster, go figure, but that's inconsequential to my story here.) They're building a school and they solicited the public for suggestions of names.
[The last time they did this they decided on Cesar Chavez School, then hired a non-local and NON-UNION contractor to build it. The roof leaked and the school developed a building-wide mold problem in the first semester it was open, which caused health issues for both students and staff. It had to be closed for a year and a half while it was essentially rebuilt, this time with a Union contractor. There's a lesson to be learned there -- don't mess with the ghost of Cesar Chavez.]
OK, new school. The names came in and on Monday evening the BOE voted unanimously to call it General Vang Pao Elementary, in honor of the Hmong guerilla fighter/military leader who was allied with the CIA during what the Vietnamese call the American War. The choice is not without controversy, but he is considered a leader of the Hmong community in the US and the choice was made to recognize and include the significant Hmong population in our schools.
I do not know enough about Vang Pao to comment on whether the accolades are deserved, or the good outweighs the bad in his character. What bothers me is the fact that we are naming an elementary school after someone who was/is primarily known as a fighter and a military leader. What kind of a message does that send to children? We work so hard to teach that fighting does not work, that bullying is not OK ... and then name a school after a general who collaborated with the biggest bullies of all in a needlessly devastating war (an alliance which was ultimately betrayed by the US, forcing thousands of Hmong to have to flee for their lives.)
Anyway, I am troubled. The board fell all over themselves to do this, practically fawning, and NOT ONE MEMBER questioned it. The intentions are basically good, but why not a more peaceful choice? (You can read about one here.) Or why not an influential figure from the local Hmong community?
What do you think?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
ahhh........the very sacred "D word". Here on the "progressive" left, we are not supposed to question diversity. But as a friend put it this morning, as we were discussing your post, "What do we REALLY mean when we use the term 'diversity'?" And he wondered, how does this REALLY help the Hmong community (especially when we name a school after a general, a drug trafficker, a man who ordered summary executions when there are peaceful Hmong that might be just as or more deserving)? And this naming schools, streets, etc, he wondered, is it just throwing "ethnic group X" a bone? I am troubled by his questions, but a real part of me sees them as good food for thought......thanks for bringing this up, LE, its a touchy area for me (and others, I gather.....)
There are so many other Hmong leaders who would be a better example for elementary students.
How about Li Xia Foung ... or Shong Lu Yang? Toubi Lyfoung? All of them encouraged education for young people, respect for parents and elders ~ traditional Asian values that span a lot of years.
And they were all peaceful people.
General Vang Pao was no example. I'm sorry to say it.. but he simply wasn't.
Peace,
~Chani
From your traveling correspondent in Rhode Island in a parking lot.... You make such good points here, Luminiferous. Sometimes your parenthetical statements shine stronger than the paragraph itself.
Either you were born with a Bonanza-sized intellect, or UW-Madison served you up a fortifying stew of coursework. So many times you are able to take something that looks benign (like that penguin movie) and then disembowel it.
I learned something from this post and from Thailand Gal's comment. Have you ever thought about running for the Board of Education?
Potato on Wheels: Terry is always trying to get me to run for the BOE. I think it would be considered a conflict of interest as long as they are my employer!
And don't you know? I learned everything I know at that amazing high school we both attended. You're no slouch in the brains dept. yourself.
What do I think?
That there were/are ANY number of folks whose name would be better suited for a school.
Period.
This goes back to that discussion we had on my blog following your on Martin Luther King day, it is always going to be a problem singling out a hero to name something after. I fully agree with you about the message this sends, how can they call an elementary school of all things after a person whose claim to fame is war?
Post a Comment