Insights emerge from what we ask ourselves and others in the dialogue on which democracy depends.
Insights emerge from what we ask ourselves and others in the dialogue on which democracy depends.
The rosy glow of DC at dawn recalls the democratic ideals of Athens’ Golden Age that inspired the Founders. That vision, still our beacon light, commands us to transcend our current crisis on all people’s behalf.
in fifth grade on Manhattan’s Upper West Side during the Vietnam War and Civil Rights in the Sixties I vowed that I would one day be President. New York was vibrant with political activity and it was normal to have friends of varied colors, creeds and customs. John F. Kennedy in the White House at 43, my Dad’s age, aroused my ambitions. Dad, a union organizer on Brooklyn’s Red Hook docks before his legendary advertising career, learned history from his vast book collection and urged me to read. Matthew Brady’s Civil War photographs, New York Times front page reproductions and Kennedy’s Profiles in Courage enthralled me to start.
I gave my first civil rights speech as P.S. 179’s valedictorian at 11, was the West Side Democratic Club’s youngest voting member at 14 — where Congressman Bill Ryan and Judge Bentley Kassal taught me the ropes while lauding my efforts. I looked back each night at the Capitol as a 23-year old U.S. Senate aide, proud to be there but wary of being tied to desk, phone and in-box, apart from the people. An unconventional path would teach me more about life, I decided.
Service as a Peace Corps Volunteer in South Korea, community organizer in Queens, and a Brooklyn Borough President’s race relations adviser shaped the social justice approach of my 19-year career teaching history, and what my writings share.
The door’s open. Come inside, and thanks.
My parting gift to Brooklyn's Leaders High School highlights the core values of our uniquely capable, caring community. May the example transcend school walls to enlighten us all.