Washington, D.C. School To Hold ‘Trayvon Martin Day,’ Complete With Iced Tea And Skittles
A Washington, D.C. elementary school has made what I can only characterize as an odd choice:
We may never know exactly how or why young Trayvon Martin was killed that dark February night in Sanford, Fla., but the slaying which has provoked nationwide protests has now prompted something even more unique nearly 900 miles away.
In an effort to better educate students and their parents about race relations and social injustice, a D.C. elementary school has declared Friday “Trayvon Martin Day.”
Teachers at Malcolm X Elementary in Southeast are using the unfolding case and the story surrounding Martin as part of their “Let’s Keep Our Children Safe” seminar.
Malcolm X Elementary Principal J. Harrison Coleman says that she hopes the lesson will help reduce the needless violence and bullying in the community.
“The children at Malcolm X know the name Trayvon Martin,” Coleman said. “They know the incident. They know because of what they see in the news and what they experience every day.”
Coleman said that every adult who attended the seminar would receive an Arizona Iced Tea and each student would get a bag of Skittles.
Jonathan Turley comments:
Given the deep difficulties in D.C. schools from low scores to school violence to drug abuse, the setting aside of this day on a still developing case is likely to be controversial. The school receives just 2 out of 10 points on school ratings. Last year, just slightly over ten percent of the third grade made the passing standards for DC on reading. Even in the DC system, the school was ranked as 24th out of 33 schools. In math, the percentage is only 4 percent. With the scores falling rather than improving at the school, I would prefer a focus on those issues during school days.
And then there’s the utter tastlessness of handing out Skittles and Arizona Iced Tea.
But Trayvon was a violent druggie. Why would you make him the hero on this day? He’s the villain. He was suspended from school for drug possession and was prowling a neighborhood looking for a window to break into. His angry FB photo of his middle-finger salute is a more appropriate photo than this airbrushed version of his sweet Jr. High days.
This whole story has moved beyond ridculus to nuts.
Are the non-black students being encouraged to wear bandages on the backs of their heads and across their noses?
It wasn’t Arizona Iced Tea, but Arizona Watermelon Tea. Which, combined with Skittles and Robotussien or other DM cough syrups or codeine, make what’s called ‘drank’. or ‘lean’.
‘Lil Wayne loves Purple Drank and even uses it in his videos. He’s even added watermelon to make a fruit punch.
http://www.metrolyrics.com/live-from-405-lyrics-lil-wayne.html
It’s well known and popular among rap artists and their fans:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080713175534AAZ335H
@Marla Hughes: Apparently “drank” is real.
But even I have a hell of a hard time stretching so far as to say that was why Martin had the Skittles. I can’t stand them myself, but they are popular for non-intoxicating purposes, too.
Every parent should instruct their children in the proper use of Arizona Ice Tea and Skittles.
Is this a public school? If so, the person (s) responsible for this garbage should be fired immediately, union or not.
Librulz edukayscien.
And down in Arizona, some school is having George Zimmerman day, where you’re encouraged to bring your gun and Gadsden flag.
And seriously…..Malcolm X Elementary? That’s hilarious. No way that’s a public school.
@Herb: FYI, there’s also a Malcolm X elementary school in Berkeley, CA. Only last week I drove past it on my way to dinner. There’s one in San Francisco too. Both are public schools. Yes, I am being serious.
@Racehorse:
this is a good example of the public schools in the bluest city in the U.S.
This is also the future of the U.S. and white become a minority and non-whites become the dominate political force in the U.S. And one should not have to think very long about why the U.S. cannot compete in the global market place and why Asians do not consider the U.S. a long term economic threat to their own economies.
Of course progressives want to pretend that the children at these types of schools would become culturally like Finns if the U.S. federal government just spent more money on entitlements.
@superdestroyer: Polly want a cracker?
@Tsar Nicholas: “
Yes, you are. I’m just not sure if a Malcolm X Elementary means the USA is the most awesome country on the planet….or if it means we’ve lost our damn minds.
Greetings:
I think that one can never remind the children enough not to bring Arizona Ice Tea and Skittles to a gunfight. Perhaps President Obama will send a video.
@Herb: The latter.
@Tsar Nicholas:
Damn right, just above ML King Blvd.
@superdestroyer:
this is a good example of the public schools in the bluest city in the U.S.
Good thing they shut down the voucher program (sarcasm)- wouldn’t want anybody to have a chance to escape this mess.
@al-Ameda: Very near to my old stomping grounds. Hell, between Henry’s, Bison Brewing and Albatross, I believe for a time I single-handedly kept the City of Berkeley afloat.
@Miscreant: With school vouchers the public school unions would die on the vine and a whole host of metrics concerning poor urban kids — test scores, dropout rates, pregnancy rates, unemployment — drastically would improve. Didn’t you get the memo? None of that ever can be allowed to happen.
@Tsar Nicholas: vouchers keep teenage girls from getting pregnant? I didn’t know they were written on condoms….
@grumpy realist: You really are good at playing stupid, simplifying what he said down to that statement. You gotta have real talent and years of experience to pull that one off.
Idiots. Like having your child come home alive from a quick trip to the local 7/11 or QT is a trivial subject. But then, I guess that is a worry you don’t have, is it?