I answered honestly, as I can't do anything else. I explained that I loved all the Easter eggs; I enjoyed the opportunity to let my imagination roam; but I am enraged about the white-savior trope that appears near the end of the movie. I don't want to spoil the movie for those who have not seen it, so all I can say is, there are other alternatives to the way some of the scenes were written. Better alternatives. CLEARLY, white adult males wrote this script. Even the policemen/women followed stereotypes. The male policemen handled the confrontation, while the female officers handled the job of "comforting." Please. That's not even the part of the movie I am upset about!
I don't think my husband, adult white male, noticed any of my concerns until I pointed them out. Daughter and I continued our conversation, including my frustration with how TKAM continues to be taught as the pinnacle of literature. If it is part of the curriculum, it needs to be taught CAREFULLY, in its historic context, with exposure to all that was and is wrong with our society and culture. Husband didn't say a word. He is ignorant about this topic. He is slowly waking up to the injustices all around us that he and his ancestors contributed to. Daughter is a strong supporter, both vocally and in her community of friendships, of LGBTQ rights. This was a delicate topic when her father was first exposed to it. He has come a long way in his support of equality in all its forms. But he still has a lot to learn, as do most of his compatriots.
Whenever I read the many threads of folks on Twitter who have lived a different life from mine, I work hard at empathy, compassion, and understanding. I read more. I follow the resources. I read the sub-threads,
and I want to crawl under a rock.
It is all so much. The constant bantering of opinions overwhelms me. For a while, I thought about whether I wanted to follow the many teacher-turned-motivational speaker folks to increase my take-home pay. I have the experience behind me. My expertise is in creativity and process learning. I could certainly inspire teachers on a larger scale. I already have the programming, which I have offered to other teachers within my own school as well as at numerous educational conferences. But I don't think I have what it takes. I am THE WORST at self-marketing. I noticed that whenever these people self-market on Twitter, they are lambasted by those who feel they have "sold-out" for capitalism, choosing the speaking circuit over the classroom.
For me, the truth is that whatever motivates a teacher to be more authentic, more intentional, more engaging with his or her students, is a valid motivation. Is #TLAP gimmicky? Sure! But it also might be the spark a teacher needs to have the courage to change content delivery and make it something students want. If it serves as the jumping off point for a teacher to reinvigorate a stale classroom, what's so wrong with that? Maybe the detractors are jealous. I don't really know. I do know that students react positively to the concepts when executed correctly and with intention. I have my own classroom evidence.
I don't agree with everything that some of the "big names" on EduTwitter espouse. Maybe it is my age. I have been around long enough to know when "the pre-scheduled slide with motivational quote" is worth an eye-roll. Some folks I have blocked or muted because their entire feed is obviously automated. Others are following a formula for social media marketing. But I stay on Twitter because it exposes me to people I am not around in my day-to-day life. That's valuable. I guess it is a matter of taking the good with the...not-so-good.
I have made a conscious decision not to go down the expert-turned-speaker route. I don't think the constant interaction with people, the extrovert energy that is needed, and the repetition of delivery is for me. Oh wait. I already do all that. I'm a teacher.