Thursday, April 19, 2018
Monday, April 16, 2018
Thank you note to the Montgomery County Board of Education
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| MoCo BOE Members Michael Durso, Shebra Evans, Jeanette Dixon, Judith Docca, Patricia O'Neill, Jill Ortman-Fouse, Matthew Post, and Rebecca Smondrowski |
Below is the thank you letter sent today to the Montgomery County Board of Education. It is always useful to let public officials know when they have made good decisions.
Montgomery County Board of Education
Carver Educational Center
850 Hungerford Drive
Rockville, MD 20850
boe@mcpsmd.org
Carver Educational Center
850 Hungerford Drive
Rockville, MD 20850
boe@mcpsmd.org
RE: Naming of Richard Montgomery Cluster Elementary School # 5 after Bayard Rustin
Dear President Durso, Vice President Evans, and Members O'Neill, Docca, Smondrowski, Ortman-Fouse, Dixon, and Post:
I want to thank you not just for the decision to name the new Richard Montgomery Cluster elementary school after Bayard Rustin, but for your thoughtful discussion of the matter. It is heartwarming to know that every member of the Board is so supportive of LGBTQ inclusion and embrace, regardless of their final vote. The choice was not between a good choice and a bad choice, but rather between good choices.
Thank you for making the choice that so many of us in Montgomery County believe will do the most good.
I have written and posted on Facebook what I hope is a comprehensive discussion of the April 12 discussion and vote. http://davidfishback.blogspot.com/…/new-elementary-school-i… This blog post includes the link to the Board's discussion, which I commend to readers. As I write at the beginning of the piece, "I have said this often, and I have a great occasion to say it again: I love my hometown, Montgomery County."
Best wishes,
David S. Fishback, Maryland Advocacy Chair
Metro DC Chapter of PFLAG
Metro DC Chapter of PFLAG
Saturday, April 14, 2018
New Elementary School in Montgomery County (MD) named after Bayard Rustin
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| Poster thanking President Obama for posthumously awarding Bayard Rustin the Presidential Medal of Freedom |
I have said this often, and I have a great occasion to say it again: I love my hometown, Montgomery County.
On April 12, 2018, the Montgomery County Board of Education voted to name the new elementary school in the Richard Montgomery Cluster after openly gay civil rights leader Bayard Rustin. The Board made that decision after hearing an outpouring of support for the Rustin name from people all over Montgomery County, not just on April 12, but over the last several weeks. See here.
Earlier in the year, the Board passed along four names, including Rustin's, to a 13-member advisory committee made up of residents of the area that the new school will serve. The local advisory committee recommended a different name, Lillian Brown, a late teacher and principal in the school system who grew up in then-segregated Montgomery County. But, as Board member Patricia O'Neill noted at the April 12 meeting, the Board heard virtually no support for Brown from other people in the County (including in the Richard Montgomery Cluster) -- in contrast to the enormous support for Rustin.
Perhaps the most persuasive Public Comments testimony for Rustin came from Jamie Griffith, a student at Montgomery Blair High School, which may be heard here. Other students and graduates, as well as parents, spoke movingly of the importance of recognition of LGBTQ leaders among those after whom schools are named. Symbols matter. The written testimony of seven of these speakers may be found here. Their, and others', expressions of support clearly moved members of the Board. Member O'Neill, who has been, for the last decade and a half, the leader on the Board advancing LGBTQ inclusion and embrace, supported the arguments by Rustin proponents that choosing that name would send an important signal to students. Members Jill Ortman-Fouse and Rebecca Smondrowski clearly displayed great emotion in expressing their well-reasoned support. Student Board Member Matt Post -- who was so eloquent as one of the speakers at the March 24 March for Our Lives on Pennsylvania Avenue in downtown DC -- was equally eloquent in speaking of classmates who felt that they had be ashamed and closeted because, even in progressive Montgomery County, they did not feel that they would be accepted for who they are. Also voting in favor of Rustin were Members Shebra Evans and Judy Docca.
As Maryland Advocacy Chair for the Metro DC Chapter of PFLAG, I want to thank and congratulate the entire Board, which had a thoughtful and insightful discussion leading up to the vote. This is true of everyone on the Board, including Michael Durso and Jeanette Dixon, who would have preferred a different name (but also expressed their admiration for Bayard Rustin). I want to note that both Mr. Durso and Ms. Dixon have been strong supporters of LGBTQ inclusion. Supporters of the cause do not have to agree on everything.
We have made wise choices over the years in electing the current members of the Board. The video of the April 12 discussion is now up on the Board's website (Items 5 (Public Comments), 6 (Board member comments on many issues) and 7 (Board discussion and vote on the naming of the new school). I suggest that it should be viewed by anyone interested in seeing how civil discourse should proceed (in contrast to what we see from federal officials these days). The Public Comments testimony and the Board's discussion should make us proud to be Montgomery Countians. (I am glad that I had the opportunity to tell that to President Durso shortly after the vote on April 12.)
Finally, I want to commend Mark Eckstein Bernardo, a parent whose children will attend the new Bayard Rustin Elementary School this autumn, for his excellent work in educating people about Bayard Rustin and encouraging the submission of expressions of support. Mark is the newly-minted Metro DC PFLAG Maryland Advocacy Vice-Chair.
****************************************************************
April 8, 2018
Michael A. Durso, President
Montgomery County Board of Education
850 Hungerford Drive, Room 123
Rockville, MD 20850
via e-mail: boe@mcpsmd.org
RE: Naming of Richard Montgomery Cluster Elementary School No. 5
Dear President Durso:
As we reflect on the half-century since the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the opportunity to name the new Richard Montgomery Cluster elementary school after one of his chief mentors and supporters, Bayard Rustin, is a blessing.
While the other proposed names are, indeed, worthy, it is important to note that only Bayard Rustin is major figure in the contemporary struggle for human rights, including his mentorship of Dr. King at the beginning of Dr. King's career. As noted on the Stanford University King Institute website ( https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/rustin-bayard ), Rustin, a disciple of Mahatma Gandhi, was the American who introduced Dr. King to the depth of Gandhi's philosophy of creative non-violence, and was instrumental in helping Dr. King implement it.
As the King Institute biography teaches us:
"Rustin provided King with a deep understanding of nonviolent ideas and tactics at a time when King had only an academic familiarity with Gandhi. Rustin later recalled: 'The glorious thing is that he came to a profoundly deep understanding of nonviolence through the struggle itself, and through reading and discussions which he had in the process of carrying on the protest." King recognized the advantages of Rustin’s knowledge, contacts, and organizational abilities, and invited him to serve as his advisor, well aware that Rustin’s background would be controversial to other civil rights leaders. As King’s special assistant, Rustin assumed a variety of roles, including proofreader, ghostwriter, philosophy teacher, and nonviolence strategist.
"Rustin was also instrumental in the formation of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), proposing to King in December 1956 that he create a group that would unite black leaders in the South who possess 'ties to masses of people so that their action projects are backed by broad participation of people.' Rustin developed the guidelines for discussion for the founding meeting of SCLC in January 1957."
"[a]lthough Rustin helped draft much of King’s [1958] memoir, Stride Toward Freedom, Rustin would not allow his name to be credited in the book, telling an associate: 'I did not feel that he should bear this kind of burden.'”
As important as Bayard Rustin's contributions were in the 1950s, perhaps even more significant was his brilliant stage managing of the 1963 March on Washington, which gave Dr. King the platform for his "I Have a Dream" Speech which galvanized the nation. Again, from the King Institute:
"In 1963 [the elderly Civil Rights Leader A. Phillip] Randolph began organizing the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Despite the concerns of many civil rights leaders, Rustin was appointed deputy director of the march. In less than two months Rustin guided the organization of an event that would bring over 200,000 participants to the nation’s capital."
This is why the Life Magazine cover following the March on Washington pictured Randolph and Rustin.
As Maryland Advocacy Chair for the Metro DC Chapter of PFLAG, I agree with so many of my fellow Montgomery Countians that selecting the name of Bayard Rustin would sent an important signal that this community honors a great American who happened to be openly gay at a time when it was dangerous to be open.
As a VISTA Volunteer in Memphis (1969-70), Co-President of the Rosemary Hills Magnet Primary School (1984-86), a member of the Montgomery County's Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Committee (1986-92), and a member of the Richard Montgomery High School PTSA Executive Committee (1996-99), I relate in this letter the history of his principal accomplishments to show that, in my opinion, even were Rustin not gay, honoring his memory by naming the new Richard Montgomery Cluster elementary school after him would be the best choice.
Sincerely,
David S. Fishback, Maryland Advocacy Chair
Metro DC Chapter of PFLAG
Olney MD
BRIDGET BAILEY LIPSCOMB FOR D.C. BAR PRESIDENT-ELECT
One of the joys of being a career attorney at the U. S.
Department of Justice was having the opportunity to work with people who shared
my commitment to quality public service.
A decade ago, I met Bridget Bailey Lipscomb, who was then an
attorney in the FTCA Section of the DOJ Civil Division, where I served as an
Assistant Director in the Environmental Torts Section. When I retired nearly five years ago, I was
pleased that Bridget was appointed to succeed me. Her reputation as a top-notch attorney and
colleague was fully justified.
I urge members of the D.C. Bar to vote for Bridget to be D.C.
Bar President-Elect. Electronic voting at
www.dcbar.org/vote opens on April 23
and closes on May 18. The information on
her website ( www.bridgetscampaign.com ) demonstrates her effectiveness
as a 15-year public servant with a long history of dedicated service to
the Bar and the community. Bridget plans to focus on making the Bar
more welcoming to and inclusive of all members, and supporting and
enhancing the Bar's commitment to access to justice through innovation and
collaboration with additional groups. So far, Bridget has been
endorsed by Katherine Mazzaferri, Cynthia Hill, and Maureen Syracuse, nine past
presidents, current and former members of the Board of Governors, the Washington
Bar Association, and many other bar leaders.
My
endorsement is also based on my assessment of her character and wisdom. On her website, Bridget lists her 2009 presentation
at Temple Emanuel’s annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Shabbat Service, on the eve of the first Obama Inaugural. As a member of Temple Emanuel, I invited her to speak on The Joshua Generation in the Promised Land. What she conveyed that evening is
reflective of the person I have come to know. Her text may be found at http://davidfishback.blogspot.com/2018/01/2009-mlk-service-at-temple-emanuel.html I have also pasted it here:
I. Introduction – The Promise of This Land
Good evening. Cantor
Boxt, my brothers and my sisters in faith – Shabbat Shalom. I would like to
personally thank David Fishback, my colleague at the United States Department
of Justice, for inviting me to spend this special evening with you.
My topic tonight is
"The Joshua Generation In the Promised Land." David informed you that
I am a member of what President-elect Obama calls "The Joshua
Generation" – the descendants of those who wandered in the desert of
injustice for centuries, and who now enter the promised land. And, as I hope to
explain this evening, you, too, are a part of the Joshua Generation.
But what is that
Promised Land? It is not a special location. Rather, the place is right where
we've been – here in America, what some have called the New Jerusalem. But
what's important is not the place, but the promise. We do not enter a new land,
but the land we have long dwelt in is now transformed by the fulfillment of a
very old promise.
"We hold these
truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that
they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among
these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." When those words
were first made the foundation of the Declaration of Independence in July 1776,
they clearly were not universally applied. Millions of Americans at that time
were held in perpetual bondage. And the author of the phrase, Thomas Jefferson,
was himself a slaveowner. The statement was an aspiration, a promise, made by a
few brave citizens of a British colony. It was a promise to be fulfilled,
hopefully, in the future of that nation.
For African Americans,
that promise remained hidden for almost 100 years, until Abraham Lincoln made
it the foundation of his Gettysburg Address in 1863. Lincoln ennobled both our
nation and its Civil War by explicitly stating that fulfilling this promise was
the goal for which all citizens – Black and White – had suffered so much in his
time. "Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this
continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition
that all men are created equal."
Progress toward that
goal was halting over the next century, until Dr. Martin Luther King made that
same idea the foundation of his life's work and his "I Have a Dream"
speech. In 1963, at the foot of the great civic temple to Lincoln in
Washington, DC, Dr. King restated the founding promise of America for all the
world to hear when he said, "I have a dream that one day this nation will
rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be
self-evident: that all men are created equal."
In 1963, it was still a
dream that our nation would "live out the true meaning of its creed." But
the promise of equality in the Declaration, the Gettysburg Address and the I
Have A Dream speech was that some day Americans would really know that
truth. And act on it, and live our lives by it. And even VOTE on
it. On November 4, 2008, we all lived it. Racial equality is no longer
a REMOTE dream. Praise God! And Lincoln and King! And the Electoral College!
The dream of racial equality NOW has a stronger promise of being realized in
short order.
Of course, racial
bigotry still rests in the hearts of many Americans, but they are a small
minority and dying out fast. And the effects of centuries of racial bigotry
remain with us today and will for some time. Fulfilling the founding promise
does not change that. But it does mean that we, the Joshua Generation, get to
start actually living what used to be only a dream.
II. The Journey of the Joshua Generation
To me, there are two
core obligations on those of us in the Joshua Generation – Remembrance and
Perseverance. Those of us who descend from historically-oppressed people,
particularly those of us who attain some measure of success, must always
remember and honor the sacrifice of those who came before. Their efforts live
on in us and remembering them brings them forth to our present, where they
share in our bounty. And they spur us on in the great work of expanding the
divine gifts of freedom, justice and love.
I know that I was only
permitted to achieve my goals because of the those in the Moses Generation of
Dr. King. Their memory pushes me to smooth the road for those who come after
me, and I am tasked with the duty and have the responsibility to do all things
well. When I speak to young children, I emphasize "EXCELLENCE."
Excellence is always my goal. I may not attain the goal every time, but I must
try. In other words, as a member of the Joshua Generation, I have an obligation
to be fully-prepared and then some for every court hearing. I have an
obligation to make sure that every legal brief I file, is exceptional. You see,
I realize that even in 2009, many African American lawyers who appear before
the judges whom I have practiced before may be unconsciously judged by my
performance. I realize that even in 2009, when I appear in a courtroom, some of
my colleagues and/or some judges perceive me as an average or maybe even less
than average lawyer because of the color of my skin. So, I must show
"excellence" to dispel the image, so that someday there will not be
even unconscious negative preconceptions.
As a member of the Joshua Generation, I have an obligation to be responsible, ethical and compassionate.
As a member of the
Joshua Generation, I have an obligation to give back to the community. For me,
that means meeting, mentoring, helping, and never forgetting those less
fortunate. Showing them what the results of hard work and dedication look like.
You here at Temple Emanuel know this – you are heavily involved in charitable projects on, among other things, environmental, economic and medical interests. You take seriously the Jewish tradition of Tikkun Olam – repairing the world. The work of the members of this Congregation demonstrates that you are living up to the responsibilities of the Joshua Generation. We all have those responsibilities, whatever our race or religion.
As a member of the
Joshua Generation, I believe, as this Temple exemplifies, that I should work
toward something bigger than myself or my own self interests. One of the ways I
did this recently was to work in the presidential campaign.
III. Trinity
United Church of Christ
I began working on the
campaign in January 2008. President-elect Obama got on my radar screen several
years earlier, when my mom would call me and talk about this intelligent,
confident and compassionate young man who was running for the United States
Senate from Illinois. Obama captured the interest of most Chicagoans. My family
and friends were no different. My connection to Senator Obama was more than
political; it was also spiritual because he and his wife were members of my
Chicago church, Trinity United Church of Christ.
So, after I learned that
Obama was a member of Trinity, I felt a bond with him. While I never met Obama
at Trinity, I met him one day with my mother in his U.S. Senate office without
an appointment. Notwithstanding his busy schedule, he met with us and treated
us as if we were his only appointment for the day. This was an early indication
of the type of person he is. When the rumors swirled that Obama was
contemplating a run for the presidency, I made up my mind that if he decided to
run, I was going to do everything I could for his campaign. And I did.
IV. Working
On The 2008 Presidential Campaign
My experiences with
the Obama campaign changed my life – and not just because we won. I saw things
that I never expected to see in my lifetime. I saw Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr.'s dream. I lived his dream. I saw Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and
Native Americans -- Protestants, Jews, Catholics, Muslims, Buddhist, agnostics,
atheists, and religious people who do not prescribe to a denomination -- young
and old, gay and straight, rich and poor, and the disabled working together
toward a common goal – CHANGE. Everyone was on equal footing in the campaign
office. I saw LOVE in action. I saw respect in action. I saw rich people
working with and assisting poor people. I saw people from red states and blue
states traveling to different parts of the country to assist with the primary
election. I saw Republicans, Democrats and Independents working together for
the campaign and for the common good. And it was something to behold.
Then came the actual election – and that CHANGED MY LIFE EVEN MORE! This election taught me that America has become what it always said it was. It was apparent to me that the country had changed right before my eyes and I was oblivious to it. Pres-elect Obama often said during the election that only in America could his story be possible. Prior to this election, I thought America had not changed much from what it was 40 years ago. I have never been so happy to be so wrong.
I know I have been
very fortunate in my life, but I often wondered whether I was an exception. I
felt that the overwhelming majority of American people still held deep-seeded
discriminatory views. I was of the belief that America would "let a few of
us through" - Thurgood Marshall, Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice, Senator
Obama and, on a much smaller scale, Bridget Bailey Lipscomb - but I thought
that was as far as we could go.
I knew
there were many Americans who had moved past our history of racial bias, but I
didn't think there were enough. I did not believe that a majority of American
voters would judge a Black man running for the highest office in the land on
the content of his character rather than by the color of his skin. During the
presidential campaign, many African Americans awakened to the fact that they
live in a different America. It was a transformation for me, and for many
African Americans – a transformation I look forward to watching play out as we
move forward together.
V. Commemorating the Dream
Since ancient times
the Jewish people have been known as "the people of the book" – the
Torah. In the Catholic school I attended, it was called "the
Pentateuch." It is said that these five books -- Genesis, Exodus,
Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy – were inspired by God and written by
Moses. These books lay the foundation not only of the Jewish faith, but of the
Christian and Muslim creeds as well. To me, two things stand out in these
ancient writings – one, the emphasis on ritual to bind us to the past, to God,
and to our community.
The other thing that
stands out to me in these great books is the wide prevalence of different forms
of slavery throughout the ancient world. Yes, slavery was widespread throughout
the ancient Roman and Greek eras, and the great Egyptian civilizations before
that. It likely existed for thousands of years before that. But one thing we do
know for sure – from the time humans started writing about themselves, there
was slavery and it continued unchecked into THIS country's old South. The
prevalence of slavery in the ancient Holy books was often used to JUSTIFY the
institution and perpetuate it in America long past the time that its moral
repugnance was well known among the nations of the world. But the glory of our
common scripture and religious heritage is that we have learned to capture its
essence, WITHOUT being bound to practices which were of a time and place NOT
OURS.
The "peculiar
institution" of chattel slavery continued more than 200 long years in this
troubled land, until ended by President Lincoln, and those citizens who elected
him.
It is not surprising
that an abomination like slavery, that persisted in human societies for
thousands of years, and in America for more than 200 years, would leave us with
a prolonged time in which its evil effects remained present. These eras are
often subdivided and labeled – Reconstruction, Jim Crow, the Civil Rights era –
but to me it is all part of one era, the post-slavery era. And I believe we
will see the BEGINNING of the end of this post-slavery era on Tuesday, January
20, 2009, when Barack Obama -- a man whose skin tone would have made him a
SLAVE when Lincoln was elected, places his hand on a Bible – a Bible last used
by Abraham Lincoln at his inaugural – and swears his oath to accept the
position of leader of this land as freely chosen by its people. And when he
does, a roar of jubilation will shoot through America like it has never known.
That feeling, that sound, will be representative of the lifting of the burden
of hundreds of years of oppression and suffering that will HOPEFULLY, HOPEFULLY
soon be cast off by all.
I believe that Barack
Obama's inauguration is a milestone in the realization of Dr. King's
"Dream." In my heart, I believe that in his dream, Dr. King
envisioned such a day: A day when a person elected based on the "content
of his character" rather than the color of his skin would begin to lead
our whole nation on a journey in which we all would try to fulfill the promise
that could be America. Dr. King told a crowd, shortly before his death, "I
may not get there with you. But . . . we, as a people, will get to the Promised
Land." Like Moses, Dr. King, from the mountain top, saw into the Promised
Land. As Dr. King's friend Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel wrote, "To guide
the pupil to the promised land, he must have been there himself." Dr. King
was there. And we are all Dr. King's pupils.
Because Dr. King,
Rabbi Heschel, Rosa Parks, Rep. John Lewis, James Chaney, Michael Schwerner,
Andrew Goodman, Justice Thurgood Marshall and Phineas Indritz (a Temple member
- now deceased - who wrote an amicus brief in Brown v. Board) worked and
marched, because they sacrificed and prayed and endured – and sometimes died.
Because they had to sit at the back of the bus, because they were beaten and
had to endure the force of water hoses and dogs let loose, because they had to
go through the era of Jim Crow -- President-elect Obama was able to attend
Harvard Law School, and become a law professor, and a state senator, and a U.S.
Senator. And he was able to be elected president of the United States of
America. Because Pres-elect Obama is standing on these and other shoulders, he
and his family are about to move into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
President-elect Obama has
said that he is part of the "Joshua Generation.." In March, 2007, at
Brown Chapel in Selma, Alabama (the cradle of the civil rights movement), Obama
said, "I'm here because somebody marched. I'm here because you all sacrificed
for me. I stand on the shoulders of giants. I thank the Moses generation . . .
. As great as Moses was, despite all he did, leading a people out of bondage,
he didn't cross over the river to see the Promised Land.. God told him your job
is done. You'll see it. You'll see what I've promised. . . ..You will see that
I've fulfilled that promise but you won't get there. We're going to leave it to
the Joshua generation to make sure it happens."
We are now reaching
the metaphorical Promised Land. And we, the Joshua Generation – not just
African Americans, but all Americans – who have so benefitted from the struggle
of our forebears, have the RESPONSIBILITY to truly make it, in the words of
scripture, a "land flowing with milk and honey." A land where all of
us can live in peace and freedom and abundance.
Finally, America has
shown the world that it is fulfilling its unique promise – the binding up of
the wounds from slavery, accomplished by the descendants of slaves working side
by side with the descendants of slave-owners. This inauguration moves us toward
a more perfect union where "all men (and women) are created equal."
As Dr. King would say, let justice "roll down like waters and
righteousness like a mighty stream."
Thank you for having
me. SHALOM.
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