Quantum Touch Collection - Books 1-3

Chapter 4-2

“Does anyone want to answer Peter"s question?” I looked around for volunteers, and some kids looked almost ready. I waited.

Dick Powers spoke up. “Mr. R, first of all, I read somewhere that it was one of the greatest speeches in American history. And it affected lots of people. But I think it matters now because there"s still discrimination. Maybe not like the fire hoses and police dogs in Alabama back then, but what about with Hispanics and most immigrants. And gay people. And Native Americans. That speech was about all men are created equal, including women.”

“Good, d**k. Did you forget African Americans? The issue is still with us, isn"t it?”

“Sorry, Mr. R. I didn"t forget. African Americans too.”

“Can someone tell me how we know that we are still waiting for Dr. King"s dream to come true?” I could tell this was a difficult discussion for these mostly middle-class kids, almost all of whom were white.

Susan raised her hand. I nodded to her to go ahead. “Mr. R, African Americans make less money than white people. They have higher unemployment rates. Fewer of them finish high school. It seems every time there"s a bad statistic, minorities lead the bad things.”

“Good answer, Susan. Class, we don"t have enough time today to discuss all the issues you"ve brought up. But I want you to think about what makes your freedom so special and which of YOUR freedoms other people shouldn"t have.” There was a murmur, an undercurrent at my loaded question. “In 1963, President Kennedy also gave a speech on civil rights. He said we should all want the equality for everyone that we want for ourselves. His speech was two months before Dr. King"s. In 1963, another speech, by Governor George Wallace…”

Susan interrupted. “He"s the one who stood in the doorway to keep students from entering the college, wasn"t he, Mr. R?”

“He was, and in his inauguration speech, he said, "Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever." That was the world then, and that was the context when President Kennedy proposed a federal law to end discrimination in public accommodations, like hotels and restaurants. The Justice Department began to play a bigger role in lawsuits to make sure it happened. He also talked about desegregating public schools and protecting voting rights. Does any of this sound familiar? Class, I"m not going to preach about this. But for homework, I want you all to read President Kennedy"s Civil Rights address and Dr. King"s "I Have a Dream" speech. There"s video of both on the class website. Watch them. Pay attention to how they frame the issues and the rhetoric. We"ll talk more about all this next week.”

Josh Martin raised his hand. “Mr. Russell, the civil rights stuff was a big part of 1963, but it wasn"t the most important thing.” He was up to something. I watched as heads turned toward him. He had rascal all over his face. “The most important thing was the Beatles.” Some of the class laughed, but Susan said, “Don"t be ridiculous, Josh.”

Josh pressed his point, that the Beatles initiated social change for a generation, and I let him go. When I want the class engaged, I call on him. The fun part is that he doesn"t always believe what he says. You can imagine what that can start. I had a feeling today was one of those times. Josh argued that not only music changed but that the Beatles started a youth revolution in hair styles, clothing, even morality.

“The Beatles might have been important, Josh. But no one was shot because their hair was too long,” Susan retorted. “The Beatles were fun for middle-class teenagers. The Civil Rights Movement brought discrimination against African Americans to the whole country"s attention. It changed the way we all live.”

He laughed at her. “And the Civil Rights Movement is still trying to get civil rights. The Beatles are still popular forty years after they stopped making music. So which was more successful?”

“Oh, Josh, be serious.”

“Why?”

“Okay, okay, thank you both. Is there anything else?”

“Mr. Russell,” said Susan, while Josh"s antenna were raised, “my grandmother told me about Kennedy"s assassination and said that it changed her generation"s view of government. She said that before he was killed, there was a lot of hope in the country, but it was like when he died, the country started to wonder about all the things government did wrong. Like the Viet Nam war.”

Susan plays counterpoint to Josh regardless of the topic. I think they like each other. Before class time ran out, I thanked them for their thinking and then reminded everyone that 1963 had been a very important year. I listed a few other events for them to think about. I asked them to consider the aftermath of Kennedy"s assassination. “Do you think the Civil Rights Act would have passed if Kennedy hadn"t been killed?”

I mentioned the murder of Medgar Evers, the church bombing and protests in Birmingham, and Dr. King"s Letter from a Birmingham Jail. I reminded them that in eleventh grade, they had studied civil disobedience and Henry David Thoreau, who inspired Dr. King and Gandhi. I also mentioned the introduction of zip codes and instant replay. There was the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which ended above-ground nuclear testing, the Supreme Court"s forbidding prayer in public schools, and the Court"s ruling in Gideon v. Wainwright that anyone charged with a crime who couldn"t afford a lawyer had to be given one. And finally, I reminded them that we were at war in Vietnam.

Letter from a Birmingham JailGideon v. Wainwright“Hey Mr. R,” Josh said. “You should teach a course about just 1963.”

An extended lightning flash lit the room, and the thunder boomed as class ended. “You have your homework assignment. Take notes.” Lightning flashed again, and a sharp pain coursed through my head. When the bell sounded, I walked to the door to let the kids go. Grabbing the knob on the outside to hold the door open, I got a shock and let go. Standing in front of the door, I rubbed my head. Ashley came down to see if I was all right.

“Yeah, but that last flash felt as if I"d put my brain in a socket.” I shook my head like a dog shaking off the rain. “I"m fine,” I said looking up at Ashley.

“I"m not so sure about that.” His ruts were back. The next period was about to start, though, and he just said, “See you later.”

My next class was waiting in the hall because I was blocking the way. I apologized and then got another shock when I touched the knob. I opened the door, propped it open with my right foot, and stared at my hand. The bell rang, and I headed inside.