Why I'm okay with making up a snow day on MLK Jr day

I love teaching equal rights to my students.
It is so hard for most of them to fathom a person being treated differently for the color of their skin and I love that!

I grew up in an area of the country that racial colors were not prominent. I grew up in an area where there were a lot of German farmers ...blond hair and blue eyes is a lot of what I saw.  But, somehow, even without having that contrast I still knew everyone I met or saw was the same... should be treated the same.

I can remember the first time that I met my ex, R's aunt.  She is from the south.  She had very strong (and wrong) views of "colored" people (as she called them).  She went as far to say, "I even had a little colored boy in my class this year that could actually learn." My jaw dropped and R. begged me to keep my mouth shut.  Fifteen years later and I can still hear her say it clear as day.  Fifteen years later and it still chills me to the bone.

So every year I teach my lesson.  I tell my students of the pain and struggles our country has gone through to get to where we are today so everyone has the same rights.

Then I have them write about inequality.

yeah... I think they got the message.