I recently read an article about women who are very much like me – LOUD. Of course, the title did its job and grabbed my attention on sight. Yep, thanks to the country girl in me, I have often been that girl who everyone said was just too darn loud. The article, “In Praise of Loud Women-The Joy and Power of Being Noisy and Female”[1] pays homage to women who are not afraid to use their voices for the good of society.
I have always, I mean literally always, wanted to be one of those women. However, I will be the first to admit that it took a lot of years of failing to get the decibel right, before I found the level at which my voice would be most relevant.
How did this happen? I’m glad you asked!
Most of us have heard the term “precipitating event”, especially during PD if you are an educator. I know, right? Every year, at least in the Dallas Independent School District, educators must complete a professional development course on the sad circumstance of suicide. For me, the term always evokes thoughts of children who are so confused about life that they see no other option for relief than ending their lives. From the first time I heard the term, which was too many years ago to divulge, it never left me. I recognized the broad implications of the idea…how it could apply to so many things in life, and how those things are usually not the things on which we might otherwise choose to focus. Sometimes, those are the things that make us stand up and fight.
How is this relevant to having a loud voice? Well, isn’t it obvious? If you have ever experienced your own, socially responsible, totally controversial, precipitating event, you know. With all due respect to “quiet cool”, sometimes, silence can be deafening. Those who are in a position to right egregious wrongs need to know, and that is impossible if all they hear is silence.
My Precipitating Event
That moment when I knew, without any stomach lurches or panicked thoughts, that I had been called to lead a charge came in January, 2021. I had been on a medical leave from my job, so a co-worker called to see how I was doing. In the course of conversation, I learned that another co-worker was also on medical leave because he had been in a serious car accident. I was concerned because, even though he was a new teacher at our campus, he had made a real impact on me. He was loud and outgoing, like me. He was opinionated, like me. He was a champion for children, like I had always tried to be. Like me, he would become a victim of a bureaucratic system in need of serious overhaul, and he would be targeted by administration for being himself.
Unfortunately, being yourself is not generally looked upon as a good thing in our current society. One of the best scenarios for illustrating this point in an educational setting, is one that involves teachers on any campus being intimidated and harassed for using social emotional learning that works to enhance their students’ learning experience, for preferring culturally relevant lessons that allow inclusivity for all students, or for operating within a reasonable level of autonomy to engage and educate our greatest stakeholders. In many cases, this creates a situation of intense stress and confusion for any educator who is passionate about these issues.
Having recently experienced life at the hands of my administrators and my district’s various departments, I knew the pitfalls that awaited my new-found friend. I knew it was time for something to break, besides the backs of excellent educators. Choosing to engage Goliath in a battle came as naturally to me as choosing my staple, Frosted Flakes, for a late-night snack. It felt like second nature. It was then that I knew it was time to raise my voice.
Just a Cog in the Wheel
When I realized that my district’s benefits department was a staggeringly inefficient and inept cog in the leave of absence wheel, and that they were costing other people their livelihoods as well, I saw that my story could make a difference. So far, it has done exactly that.
Anyone who knows me, knows that writing is also a passion of mine. If something piques my interest, I research it, and begin to write it down. I consider its application to my life. When that happens, as is my nature since I was a child, I am compelled to also consider its application to the lives of others. I contend that it is high time WE change the narrative around teacher/administrator relations in the Dallas Independent School District.
Good Trouble?
All too often, those of us who speak out are considered whistleblowers. Those of us who balk at pettiness and child’s play in the workplace are considered troublemakers. Those of us who refuse to tolerate harassment and toxicity from anyone, particularly those who put their big girl panties on the same way we do, one leg at a time, are considered “unteachable”.
At first, the fight was quiet. I used what God gave me. I put my complaints in writing by penning a private letter to the powers that be. I got no response. I knew the letter came from a place of authenticity, and probably most importantly, it was my truth. I was determined to walk in it until I got some answers. I then posted an excerpt of the letter to social media as an open letter to the Dallas ISD powers that be.
Immediately, stories from other educators began to trickle in via social media comments and personal texts. I was pleasantly surprised. Former co-workers began to call and congratulate me on my courage…on using my voice to reveal the true nature of the school administrator beast. Eventually, I began to hear from educators from across the district who wanted to tell their stories to the powers that be as well. I was absolutely appalled by those stories. Now, others who have been impacted by administrative bullying have begun to send video accounts, and they all wait with bated breath while the story plays out. Meanwhile, their torture continues.
Well, here I stand, on the precipice of change, in all my whistleblowing, unteachable, troublemaking glory! I choose to walk in the ways of people like the late John Lewis. Like him, I welcome “good trouble”. The following link will take you to a Facebook post that includes an excerpt, which will explain a little bit of the story behind why I was thrust into a fight that nobody thought I could win…except me.
Maybe I am too loud for my own good, but apparently, I’m at just the right decibel for the good of others.
Read the excerpt from “Open Letter to Dr. Michael Hinojosa and the Dallas ISD Board of Trustees”[2] by clicking here or by clicking the link in the footnotes section of this page.
[1] https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/nov/06/in-praise-of-loud-women-the-joy-and-power-of-being-noisy-and-female
[2] https://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.thomas.94849/
You can find books by this author at the Rainbows Online Book Store! Shop on Facebook for her books as well: https://www.facebook.com/dueseasonwriters, or follow the Queen's Nuggets at https://www.facebook.com/queenthingszine
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