Jayne Morris-Crowther: America's teachers endure enough without being called brainwashers

To The Daily Sun,

We all benefit from the free exchange of ideas that The Laconia Daily Sun facilitates for the Lakes Region. But when a writer insults and condemns a whole profession as contemptible brainwashers, surely he must provide proof of his accusation.

Recently one of your readers claimed that American history teachers do not teach but rather brainwash students. This prompts the question, “What was the writer’s experience that led him to this conclusion?” He claims that whites are no longer credited with “suppressing” slavery. In fact, slavery ended only after the deaths of over 360,000, primarily white, soldiers when the Federal (or Union) Army vanquished the Confederate States of America’s army. Did the writer’s American history class really fail to include the Civil War in his/her curriculum? In addition, the writer stated that Africans could have ended slavery by their refusal to participate in it. The U.S. Constitution forbade the importation of African slaves in 1808. Nevertheless, slavery continued and expanded in the United States until 1865 when the 13th Amendment passed by a white dominated Congress and ratified by white-led states became part of the Constitution. Once more, did the writer’s history class actually fail to mention the 13th Amendment?

America’s teachers endure low pay, limited resources and relentless criticism from people who oftentimes have little knowledge about what actually goes on in their classrooms. Regardless, they show up day after day, year after year because they love their students and subjects. There is little incentive after that. I can state that because I have direct experience as a teacher myself and dealing with my colleagues for 38 years in four different states.

Jayne Morris-Crowther

Laconia