MLK-Inauguration Challenge

posted by Katha Pollitt on 01/17/2009 @ 3:00pm

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I love the idea of Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a day of community service rather than a day to shop for bargains on mattresses and sweaters. The USA Service website lists all sorts of opportunities, but by the time I logged on most of the actual organized events in New York City were full, and somehow, lugging a bag of old clothes to the Housingworks thrift store, apparently our town's backup proposal for latecomers, lacks that certain thrill.

So in the spirit of the day, I offer some classroom proposals from Donorschoose.org as a challenge to those of you out there who are in the same fix as me: you want to honor MLK Monday-- and Inauguration Tuesday-- but haven't quite found the way. As you may already know, Donorschoose.org is a website where teachers put up their classroom needs, and donors--that's you -- can give any amount they want to fund them.

I hope you'll check out my Giving Page here. I've focussed on high-poverty schools around the country.You'll find opportunities to fund supplies for the only debate team in the South Bronx, guitars to rebuild a once-famous music program in Baltimore, classroom essentials for Chicago kindergarteners and more.

Ps. Send me your receipt for $50 or more, and if you are one of the first 10, I'll send you a signed copy of Learning to Drive:And Other Life Stories, my collection of personal essays, or Virginity or Death! my most recent collection of Nation columns.

Comments (28)

support blackcoptermedia.com, the voice of reason in a season of treason! w and the klingons

Posted by thesid at 01/17/2009 @ 3:17pm
Sounds like a good idea, how nice to do something for someone other than ourselves, especially in this need for greed society. It makes for a nice fore runner for PE Obama's inauguration the next day; wouldn't MLK be so proud if he could see that happen?

Posted by Caj at 01/17/2009 @ 5:27pm
how about building some homes for d.c.'s homeless?

or at least give them front row tickets.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 5:46pm
wouldn't MLK be so proud if he could see that happen?

Posted by Caj at 01/17/2009 @ 5:27pm

perhaps.

but i bet he would be too busy defending d.c.'s homeless.

let's do some math:

inauguration estimates = $160,000,000 so,

let's say $200,000,000 (it is government, after all)

habitat for humanity says a u.s. house costs about $60,000...

so 200,000,000 ÷ 60,000 = 3,333 homes

i bet mlk would have picked up a hammer instead of stroking egos.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 6:19pm
Briefly interjecting, apologies to Katha Pollitt: did The Nation have an editorial position on the Gaza catastrophe? The lack of any visible united position from The Nation at this point on an issue it should be leading the American "alternative" political press charge on is at this point being ridiculed:

"Disgrace of the Nation magazine Look at the cover page of the Nation magazine. Do they even know about Israeli massacres in Gaza?" --- http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2009/01/disgrace- of-nation-magazine.html

Posted by syfriendly at 01/17/2009 @ 6:26pm
If I had a hammer I'd hammer in the morning I'd hammer in the evening All over this land I'd hammer out danger I'd hammer out a warning I'd hammer out love between my brothers and my sisters All over this land

If I had a bell I'd ring it in the morning I'd ring it in the evening All over this land I'd ring out danger I'd ring out a warning I'd ring out love between my brothers and my sisters All over this land

If I had a song I'd sing it in the morning I'd sing it in the evening All over this land I'd sing out danger I'd sing out a warning I'd sing out love between my brothers and my sisters All over this land

Well I've got a hammer And I've got a bell And I've got a song to sing All over this land It's the hammer of justice It's the bell of freedom It's the song about love between my brothers and my sisters All over this land

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 6:36pm
Posted by syfriendly at 01/17/2009 @ 6:26pm

well, gaza is mentioned 7 times on the cover.

but all kinda waaaaaaaayyyy down the page.

anyhoo,

this inauguration is an affront to all the unemployed in america.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 6:48pm
Sorry Katha, many of us will be working-keeping the economy running.

Posted by lvliberty1 at 01/17/2009 @ 6:32pm

no rest for the WICKED!

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 6:51pm
here sy,

read "the american conservative":

http://www.amconmag.com/article/2009/jan/26/00006/

The Gaza offensive has succeeded in punishing the Palestinians but not in making Israel more secure.

By John J. Mearsheimer

Israelis and their American supporters claim that Israel learned its lessons well from the disastrous 2006 Lebanon war and has devised a winning strategy for the present war against Hamas. Of course, when a ceasefire comes, Israel will declare victory. Don't believe it. Israel has foolishly started another war it cannot win.

The campaign in Gaza is said to have two objectives: 1) to put an end to the rockets and mortars that Palestinians have been firing into southern Israel since it withdrew from Gaza in August 2005; 2) to restore Israel's deterrent, which was said to be diminished by the Lebanon fiasco, by Israel's withdrawal from Gaza, and by its inability to halt Iran's nuclear program.

But these are not the real goals of Operation Cast Lead. The actual purpose is connected to Israel's long-term vision of how it intends to live with millions of Palestinians in its midst. It is part of a broader strategic goal: the creation of a "Greater Israel." Specifically, Israel's leaders remain determined to control all of what used to be known as Mandate Palestine, which includes Gaza and the West Bank. The Palestinians would have limited autonomy in a handful of disconnected and economically crippled enclaves, one of which is Gaza. Israel would control the borders around them, movement between them, the air above and the water below them.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 7:15pm
Ultimately a genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus, but a molder of consensus.

dr. king.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 9:48pm
I am convinced that if we are to get on the right side of the world revolution, we as a nation must undergo a radical revolution of values. We must rapidly begin the shift from a "thing-oriented" society to a "person-oriented" society. When machines and computers, profit motives and property rights are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, materialism, and militarism are incapable of being conquered.

dr. king.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 9:55pm
A host of positive psychological changes inevitably will result from widespread economic security. The dignity of the individual will flourish when the decisions concerning his life are in his own hands, when he has the means to seek self-improvement. Personal conflicts among husbands, wives and children will diminish when the unjust measurement of human worth on the scale of dollars is eliminated.

dr. king.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 9:58pm
We all have the drum major instinct. We all want to be important, to surpass others, to achieve distinction, to lead the parade. ... And the great issue of life is to harness the drum major instinct. It is a good instinct if you don't distort it and pervert it. Don't give it up. Keep feeling the need for being important. Keep feeling the need for being first. But I want you to be the first in love. I want you to be the first in moral excellence. I want you to be the first in generosity.

dr. king.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 10:01pm
Let us develop a kind of dangerous unselfishness.

dr. king.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 10:03pm
The effort to clear the streets of Washington of its homeless population was unlike anything that former homeless man David Pirtle has witnessed.

"I was on the streets when George W. Bush had his second inauguration in 2005 and it was nothing like this. There were no large-scale sweeps. I slept on Pennsylvania Avenue the night before and the night after the inauguration," said the 34-year-old who now works for the National Coalition for the Homeless.

"But as hard as the administration is going to try to make this look sanitary, the homeless are not going to be invisible. You can't make 6,000-12,000 people disappear," he said, citing official figures for homelessness in Washington-proper and the greater metropolitan area, including suburbs in Virginia and Maryland.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 10:08pm
It's difficult to count the homeless, but local officials say there are more than 6,000 in Washington, including many who suffer from mental and physical disabilities. On an average day, dozens of encampments can be found along Pennsylvania Avenue, which will host the parade.

The location is a popular one for homeless people because of its proximity to soup kitchens and other services. The benches in the area -- from the White House to the Capitol -- tend to fill up at night with the homeless, bundled under blankets and surrounded by their shopping carts, bags and other items.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 10:11pm
$160,000,000 buys a lot of blankets!

$160,000,000 buys a lot of soup!

$160,000,000 buys 3,333 homes!

6,000 homeless in the capital of the richest country on earth.............

$160,000,000!

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/17/2009 @ 10:13pm
syfriendly,

Obama is president now. No more bad news. Everything is rosey.

Posted by bleedingheart at 01/17/2009 @ 11:52pm
well rio, anything's better than the bush locos.

still, $160,000,000 could be much better spent than on this exercise in cheesiness.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/18/2009 @ 02:13am
Posted by comanchenation at 01/18/2009 @ 12:12am

Hey, RIO....what party did Hoover belong to?

(I'm betting he can't force himself to post it..."independent" that he is...heheh)

Posted by Mask at 01/18/2009 @ 07:41am
Also, the "Obamaville" is dumb; Hoovervilles were so named because the situation that created them was tied to Hoover. Obama was had zero time as President.

Also, for the record, a huge amount of the inauguration spending is on security, for the millions of people coming into D.C. I assume that the clearing out of homeless people is largely for that same reason, because MILLIONS of people are coming into the society. I'm not saying that it makes it any less cruel (it doesn't), but it is at least worth pointing out that I don't think they're trying to "sanitize" the city.

Posted by Thrawn at 01/18/2009 @ 10:20am
millions for security is just part of the affront.

HOW ABOUT SPENDING $200,000,000 ON D.C.'S POLICE FORCE? i bet the residents of d.c. would sure appreciate that.

it's all the same shindig.

no shindig, no security.

a $200,000,000 exercise in vanity.

there is no justification.

just another stuporbowl.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/18/2009 @ 11:35am
They should spend that money moving out all the residents of Washington, not just the whores,street people, and drunks....also, remove the airconditioning from the Capital. This would cut the crime rate to a tolerable amount.....white collar as well as street crime. Perhaps return the city to a liveable place again.

Offering that kind of money to the population would have the effect of the Pied Piper. Look at the effect thatkind of money has on Frosty. And he contributes none buthas all kinds of ideas as to how others money should be spent. An example of what the UN, libs and socialists and foreigners want more than anything... Access to cash from US taxpayers.

Or spend that money building walls and guard towers around the entire DC area. Since 90 % behaviors there should be prosecutable anyway.

Posted by YourJomamma at 01/18/2009 @ 12:51pm
have another drink, jm.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/18/2009 @ 1:24pm
Briefly interjecting, apologies to Katha Pollitt: did The Nation have an editorial position on the Gaza catastrophe? The lack of any visible united position from The Nation at this point on an issue it should be leading the American "alternative" political press charge on is at this point being ridiculed:

Posted by syfriendly at 01/17/2009 @ 6:26pm

This inauguration should be labeled - "makes no difference if you are black or white."

A wonderful speech from JFK from the past on the importance of and responsibility of media.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQGeXrdR_DQ

Obama is a JFK copycat, but he will never be a JFK.

The editorial position (and yes, absence is a position) of The Nation on Gaza is absolutely represensbile and utter hypocrisy. And the editor in chief has the audacity to criticize bloggers here as "mean spirited."

Posted by OneVote at 01/18/2009 @ 2:44pm
I'm gonna buy the sweater. It's what 'ole Katha would REALLY want. :)

Posted by CHIP THORNTON at 01/19/2009 @ 08:49am
the donation site doesn't accept non-US donations.

Posted by enzo1990 at 01/19/2009 @ 4:18pm
thank god. i was starting to feel guilty.

Posted by frosty zoom at 01/19/2009 @ 5:22pm