America, where teachers must beg for donations that a private foundation will match. Giving to a cause like this is kind. But we must ask what we have done to make this necessary.https://twitter.com/mshardisonsroom/status/1032437256768745472 …
-
-
Let’s be honest about who we have become: We are no longer a country that believes people can make their own fate. We are a country that believes that destiny is inherited. And our policies reflect that belief.
Show this thread -
The donor society: Restaurants, Uber, even coffeeshops where you buy at the counter don't pay workers enough -- but you can tip! Our government doesn't fund schools enough -- but you can donate! Our government is full of liars -- but you can GoFundMe the truth out of them!
Show this thread -
"In the not too distant future philanthropic giving will outstrip federal outlays on non-defense discretionary programs, like education and the arts" --
@ElizKolbert in The@NewYorker. This is the society you want to live in?Show this thread -
Do you know what it's called when the young and the vulnerable and the poor depend on the whims of rich people rather than our shared institutions? Feudalism.
Show this thread -
What I've spent the last three years trying to investigate and demonstrate in
@WinnersTakeAll is that "giving back," noble as it seems, is really just trickle-down-economics with a cherry on top.Show this thread -
I want to say one more thing, speaking very personally. Starting when I was little boy, my family would leave Ohio and fly to India every couple years to visit our relatives.
Show this thread -
We in America did things around the house for ourselves. But our relatives in India had servants. And those servants lived dependent on the whims of those with money.
Show this thread -
There was no meaningful Indian safety net to speak of, no common institutions in the society to buffer them from the ups and downs of fate, no labor laws that were actually enforced for house servants.
Show this thread -
And so when rains flooded their village, or their roof fell in, or their child took ill, or malaria came for them, what did the servants do? They sought a donation.
Show this thread -
And affluent Indians are happy to make those donations. It makes them feel good and helps the servants. Win-win. But those affluent Indians don't pay servants a living wage. Don't fight for a safety net that will cost them. Don't abide by labor laws limiting the workday.
Show this thread -
Donors choose, indeed. But when we look at a faraway country, it may be more clear to us that that isn't a fair society. The donation is an act of generosity that is allowed to substitute for justice.
Show this thread -
America is becoming such a place. A society in which the rich ensure that there are no common institutions capable of helping ordinary people, which saves the winners money and makes them feel important when donations must be sought.
Show this thread -
I remember writing about the founder of TaskRabbit. This was her vision of the economy of the future. https://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/02/us/02iht-currents02.html …pic.twitter.com/OplbiLnYvz
Show this thread -
We are heading toward a state in which a small few throw bucks and tips and donations at the many while capturing and draining our shared institutions. A Downton Abbey republic. If you want to go deeper, there is a book where this thread came from: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/539747/winners-take-all-by-anand-giridharadas/9780451493248/ …
Show this thread
End of conversation
New conversation -
-
-
I've spent thousands and thousands over 30 years...because I loved my students...now DeVos is going to arm teachers with guns..freakin nuts
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
Local funding is historical though. Most states have many less school districts today than they did 100 years ago (which is approx when school started to become the norm).
-
And then working class people hate their poor neighbors way more than rich folks do. Rich folks are either indifferent or charitable, not bilious.
-
Yeah, um, rich and upper middle class folks build their entire lives on ensuring they never run across or share air with working class or poor folks (who aren't serving them).
End of conversation
New conversation -
-
-
I live in Canada, & although we have some issued in our public education system, my students are always horrified when I explain how schools are funded in US. The inequities become entrenched so deeply. As a teacher, it horrifies me. Education should open doors not slam them shut
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
I think what is also clear from the lack of funding is that we don’t value children.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.