Teachers with Guns

a look at what's broken through the lens of trust.

Jun 08, 2022

It had been a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad week.

I was exposed to Covid and needed to cancel a long anticipated trip. That same evening, I learned of the massacre at Robb Elementary School. Two teachers and nineteen fourth graders, children the same age as my own. And still the same old, same old: a dying friend, the country knee-deep in Covid and constant school year exhaustion. But the idea of arming teachers with guns feels like a sickening new low. As one teacher said: “you don’t trust us to choose books for our libraries, but you would trust us to take up guns in our classrooms?”

Despite the United States being a hyper consumer society, more isn't better when it comes to trust. Quantity is irrelevant. A recent illustration of this is the Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard defamation trial. Depp brought suit against Heard for words he assumed were about him; Heard countersued. She had plenty of evidence (photos, texts, witnesses, notes, etc) to back up her words that Depp was abusive to her*. Heard had more evidence that the abuse survivors I used to work with and more than many survivors do. Even as the trial went on and the pile of evidence mounted, it was obvious that Heard was the untrustworthy one. Nothing was enough. The jury ruled in Depp's favor. Heard was the non-trustworthy one.

When it comes to trust, the who matters more than the what.

European immigrants to America didn't trust the Native people whose land they proclaimed their new home. In an ironic twist, this distrust has evolved into not trusting anyone not born in the United States. We also don't trust people who speak a different language in front of us. White folks and Black don't trust each other. Southerners and Northerners distrust each other. Democrats and Republicans don't trust each other. Neither do men and women. We don't trust social workers enough to do to fully fund Medicaid. Teachers aren't trusted to teach history or talk about racism or even current events. Librarians can be trusted to choose books for libraries. We also don't trust people in masks, people without masks, abuse survivors, homeless people, addicts, people in larger bodies and mothers.

We have been conditioned through centuries in a white supremacist capitalist patriarchy. That distrust is a protective response to the dangers of living in systems that are intended for very few. Trust is impossible in systems that are set up to sow discord among its citizens.

We rail on Amazon because they have become too big, a conglomerate and have pushed out mom and pop shops. The problem isn't that Amazon is a success; it's how capitalism is structured and permitted to exist.

Slavery, Jim Crow and a history of deliberate disenfranchisement are seen as examples of our racist past. This isn't exactly wrong but it ignores the way white supremacy was allowed to thrive and its continued impact today.

Men aren't from Mars; women aren't from Venus. They don't have essentialist qualities that make them inherently different from each other. The problem is how patriarchy perpetuates the domination of men over women.

I know why people don't trust their doctors and what happens when they don't. I know how to get providers to get to trust faster with patients, clients. But this work centers, at minimum, on an acknowledgment by the provider of the power that they hold. If Nurse Sarah or Dr Bev cannot admit that they have more power than a patient, however, then I can't do anything. There's nothing further that can be done.

I'm not alone in this conclusion. In a recent New York Times Opinion piece, Tressie McMillan Cottom said "we cannot bring about the world we want to live in through voting, through boycotting, by suing." As someone who has long felt the futility of the "call your senator!" squawk, I found this reassuring. But it's also disturbing AF to hear someone else speak out loud what my inner voice has told me: not enough minds can be changed to make enough of a difference.

And this is exactly where quantity does come into the trust equation: we need to change enough of the "right" minds. Not just those peering at scans or performing colposcopies but the minds who shape curricula, policy and practice. Unfortunately, these are the people in positions of power in a white supremacist capitalist patriarchy.

Arming teachers against killers with guns is a diversion tactic, of course, but it will never be an idea I can influence. I can make all the calls I want but the numbers aren't in my favor. Not enough minds can be changed to make enough of a difference. Despite knowing this, it's still tempting to act against the idiocy. (Sometimes I do.)

For now though, my efforts are better served here, on this page. Putting rage and helplessness into rough language as a placeholder of society in the early days of the twenty first century. Something larger than me is demanding to be noticed and noted. My mistrust hackles are up but I'm following the summons anyway.

*Heard never specifically named Depp as the abuser she was referring to when she called herself a survivor.

What’s On My Mind:

These words from teachers via The New York Times feel like an important reminder of who we are and what really matters.
I also love this poem co-created by 33 teachers from around the country.
This Ann-Helen Petersen interview with Jessica Calarco looks at public education, summer camps and the inherent inequities of being a parent at a time when the pervasive belief is “why should I care about / care for other people’s kids?”. Cue: “liberation for all” quote by Fannie Lou Hamer. This article is a longer read but the best bits are early on.
Consider this your reminder to thank a teacher.

What I’m Reading and Loving:

A new section dedicated to sharing the non-average books. This week something different: I am sharing two past reads that I love and highly recommend.

Tuesdays with Morrie - Mitch Albom. Morrie is Albom’s old college professor who Albom learns is dying of ALS. It may be that my own mom died of ALS but this book has stayed with me for years. Sweet, feel-good and SHORT!
How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and the Hidden Power of Character - Paul Tough. A look at how today’s educational systems and how we can improve the lives of children growing up in adversity. A very trauma-aware read that is accessible and full of thoughtful ideas on how we can do better by kids.

Tell me a book you are loving right now! Especially if it feels like a beach read. If we can all stay healthy, we’ll head to the beach this weekend!

Beginning Where You Are

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