Thanksgiving, 1621 to 2017

Uh ... The first Thanksgiving was not like this painting.

THE POPULAR MYTH of Thanksgiving was that in 1621, the Pilgrim's invited the Native Americans to a feast for a successful harvest. We now know there's more to the story but Native Americans still have reason to regret their welcoming attitude to the undocumented aliens in their land.

A year ago, Native Americans and environmentalists were at Standing Rock, South Dakota trying to prevent the construction of the oil pipeline across their land out of fear of contamination of their water source.

In November that year, when officials became agitated with the ongoing presence of the protestors, the demonstrators were sprayed with water and tear gas in freezing cold weather. That same fall, security dogs reportedly bit protesters on multiple occasions.

Thanksgiving last year at Standing Rock included police tear-gassing the protestors.

Donald Trump's oil-friendly administration removed any environmental or legal barriers to the pipeline last February, opening the way for the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.

The dire warnings of environmental danger came true last week when more than 200,000 gallons of crude oil leaked out of the South Dakota pipeline, a leak that engineers said wouldn't happen.

RELATED: 

• A different perspective on Thanksgiving
• Thanksgiving greetings: From the 'you've got to be kidding department'

TransCanada confirmed that on Nov. 17, that the leak, the largest in the state to date, follows another leak in April from the Dakota Access Pipeline that tainted the land with nearly 17,000 gallons.

"It is a below-ground pipeline, but some oil has surfaced above ground to the grass," Walsh said of the most recent environmental setback. "It will be a few days until they can excavate and get in borings to see if there is groundwater contamination."

We're tempted to say, "We told you so," but that won't stop the oil industry from lobbying for more pipelines, more oil and -- despite the industry's assurances -- we can expect with certainty, more oil spills.

Tnanksgiving 2017: The Dakota of 200,000 gallons of oil last week is leaching into the ground and threatens
the water supply
.__________________________________________________________________________________________________

California schools will link WWII internment camps to current anti-immigrant actions

DOROTHEA LANGE

The famous photographer was commissioned by the U.S. government to chronicle the internment camps.

ASAM NEWS

CALIFORNIA GOV. Jerry Brown signed legislation that would draw connections for students and the public between today’s political climate and the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.

The SF Chronicle reports AB 491 will fund educational programs that link current attacks on civil rights and the incarceration camps.

It is an obvious swipe at President Trump from the Democratically controlled California legislature.

“When the Trump administration is infringing on the rights of Californians, we’re not going to be afraid to challenge that, whether that’s through legislation or, as the attorney general (Xavier Becerra) is doing, through the courts,” Kevin Liao, spokesman for Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, D-Paramount (Los Angeles County), said to the San Francisco Chronicle.

$3 million has been funded over the next three years for projects.

Japanese Americans since 9/11 have been outspoken in support of Muslim communities under attack.

Just two weeks ago, children of Gordon Hirabayashi, Minoru Yasui, and Fred Korematsu filed a brief in court opposing the Muslim American travel ban.

Hirabayashi, Yasui and Korematsu risked their livelihoods during World War II to oppose the incarceration orders back then, reported Rafu Shimpo.

“Rather than repeat the injustices of the past,” states the brief, the court “should heed the lessons of Korematsu, Hirabayashi, and Yasui: Blind deference to the Executive Branch … is incompatible with the protection of fundamental freedoms.”

The brief was filed before President Trump announced a new travel ban designed to get around the objections of the court, but which critics say is the same old same old.

_______________________________________________________________________________

A dark era in the Philippines has been forgotten

THE May 9 elections in the Philippines put that country into the international spotlight once again ... but, not in a good way.

Much of the attention was given to the victory of Davao City Mayor Ricardo Duterte, who is the new president of the Philippines. He campaigned as a strongman who promised to kill five criminals a week. He's often described as the Trump of the Philippines for the outlandish statements he makes.

RELATED: Comedian John Oliver on Ricardo Duterte

The other headline grabber was the candidacy of Senator Bongbong Marcos, the son of Ferdinand Marcos, the late dictator. He was running for the country's Vice Presidency. In the Philippines, the president and vice president run separately and often are of the opposing political parties.

Congresswoman Leni Robredo will likely beat Bongbong although it hasn't been made official as of this writing. (Marcos is challenging the results because of alleged anomalies in the vote count.)

However, the fact that a Marcos - even if it is Marcos Jr. -  could make a strong run to political prominence brought attention to the lack of knowledge about the horrors of the dictatorship, which ended 30 years ago. Apparently, the country's school system isn't teaching anything about that dark era.

It was the first time that Filipino/Americans, who hold dual citizenships, were allowed to vote in the presidential election. The weekend of the elections, Filipinos flocked to consulates, community centers or supermarkets to cast their ballot. It would be interesting to know how long those Fil/Am voters had been in the U.S. but preliminary findings showed that Fil/Ams voted similarly as their counterparts in the Philippines.

A social experiment was conducted by CARMMA, the Campaign Against the Return of Marcoses to Malacanang (the Philippines' White House), to demonstrate the black hole in the country's schools which are failing to teach the truth about the despotic rule of the Marcoses. The experiment begins with an interviewer asking Millennials what they knew about the martial law years.

That’s when the young voters start to rationalize its implementation in various ways, remembering all the lessons they learned in school. They talked about there being law and order and one participant compared the dictator to a strict loving parent. And these were college students, supposedly the best educated young people in the country.

And then when the interviewers revealed that they were victims of the Marcos dictatorship and described their experiences which included torture and rape, the young people got teary eyed and embarrassed at their ignorance. They confessed, they were not taught any of the horrors in school.

As advocates of ethnic studies and the teaching of the true history of the United States - the bad, as well as the good - we can sympathize with the Philippines' young people.Those who control history, control the future. 

A petition was launched in Change.org by CARMMA that will be given to the Philippines Department of Education asking that this dark era of the Philippines be taught in their schools. That knowledge is critical so that voters can see through the posturing, phony promises and outrageous claims of the politicians who seek to be their leaders.

The wounds from the Marcos years are still too raw. It is too soon to forget what happens when so-called strong men rule the county and power goes to their head. Remember the words of caution from philosopher Jorge Santayana: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." With the resurgence of the Marcos family and the apparent election victory of Ricardo Duterte, it looks as though that's what is happening in the Philippines.

###

California bill would put ethnic studies into schools, but the governor hesitates ...

An assembly at a California high school shows the diversity in the state's student body.

GROWING UP in an immigrant household, I remember my parents would always refer to our white neighbors as the "Americans."

This was funny, because my father fought for the U.S. during World War II and defended the Stars and Stripes in Korea and worked for the the city we lived in. How American can you get?

The image they had of themselves were as foreigners - not "Americans."

In school, we were told about our American forefathers, Manifest Destiny, the building of the transcontinental railroad, about grand ideas, inventions and bravery of historical figures, all of whom were European descendants. It's no wonder we held "Americans" in such high regard. No wonder the Euro-Americans hold themselves in such high esteem. They built themselves a society in which all the institutions supported and perpetuated this myth.

A California bill awaiting the governor's signature could dramatically change this single-lens perspective.

Assembly Bill 101 seeks to widen the lens through which history and literature  is taught in California schools. Authored by a coalition of Asian, Latino and black lawmakers, including   Assemblyman Chris Holden, Luis Alejo and Rob Bonta, the potentially game-changing bill  was passed by the Assembly and state Senate and sent to Gov. Jerry Brown on Sept. 8.

If the governor signs the bill, it would the first step in easing a lot of tension America is undergoing because the country's shifting demographics wherein we see the white population shrinking and the communities of color getting larger. By 2040, demographers estimate Euro-Americans would be in the minority in California. 

RELATED: Take an ethnic studies class to understand history

A study by Dr. Christine Sleeter revealed that an alarming gap between the real diversity of California’s students and the people students see, read about and read from in these textbooks. For example, despite our state’s diversity, Dr. Sleeter found that “in history/social science [textbooks], representation of whites ranged from 41-80 percent, African-Americans from 2-28 percent, Latinos from 0-4 percent, American Indians from 1-10 percent, and Asian-Americans from 0-8 percent.” Compare these percentages to the 2014 student demographics in San Diego Unified School District: 23 percent white, 10 percent African-American, 46 percent Latino, .3 percent American Indian and 3 percent Asian-American."

What school children of color learn is that their fathers, grandparents or ancestors have not contributed to the greatness of this country and that they should be grateful that the Euro-Americans have allowed them to enjoy the benefits of being an American. In a state like California where the student body is 75% students of color, shifting the viewpoint would have a powerful impact on their self-image and the way their communities fit in the making of this country.  

Assembly Bill 101 notes:

"Based on the National Education Association (NEA) publication, The Academic and Social Value of Ethnic Studies, the inclusion of ethnic studies in a curriculum has a positive impact on pupils of color. 

"Ethnic studies benefit pupils in observable ways, such as pupils becoming more academically engaged, increasing their performance on academic tests, improving their graduation rates, and developing a sense of self-efficacy and personal empowerment.

AB101 would create a blue-ribbon advisory body to come up with recommendations on how to broaden the state's K-12 curriculum. In its original version, the bill would have mandated the inclusion of ethnic studies in high school.

Huffpost graphic

A 2011 study concluded that a curriculum that integrated ethnic studies into a school’s regular studies is more likely to positively impact students’ racial attitudes than occasional assemblies or erratic programs.

Thandeka K. Chapman & Tricia M. Gallagher-Geurtsen with the California Chapter of the National Association for Multicultural Education, San Diego regional network, wrote an opinion piece for the San Diego Union Tribune:

"We support AB 101 because developing ethnic studies programs in all of our state’s public high schools is an integral part of cultivating a classroom and social environment that is accepting of diverse cultures and challenges students to become thoughtful consumers of information. It is vital for young people to learn about the many different histories and contributions of Americans, while also feeling like they can change their communities in positive ways. This bill will help close the achievement gap by reducing student truancy, increasing student enrollment, reducing dropout rates and better preparing Californian youth to be college-prepared, career-ready and social-justice oriented."

ACTION ALERT

Unfortunately, the Ethnic Studies Now Coalition says they have heard this bill has lukewarm support by the Governor’s office and with than a week to go, he may veto the bill. Here are two things you can do right now to help passage of AB101:

1. Call Governor Brown at (916) 623-4866
Then dial 1 for English & 4 to speak with a rep. Use/Share this ESN number so we can keep track of how many calls are made.

2. Email Governor Brown:

You can also sign a petition asking the governor to sign AB101

 CLICK HERE