Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Today is Inauguration Day in Washington, D.C. Our 44th President, Mr. Barack H. Obama, will be installed officially at a ceremony that begins at 10:00 a.m. and culminates in a luncheon with his predecessor, Mr. George W. Bush, in the early afternoon. The swearing-in itself takes place at noon EST, which is in the middle of A lunch, and the ceremony featuring Aretha Franklin, Yo Yo Ma, the music of John Williams, and a reading from the poet Elizabeth Alexander will spill into fourth period.

Gov. Crist has sent a letter to all educators requesting that we show the inauguration ceremony to all public school students. In compliance with this, I will have my television on from the beginning of A lunch through fourth period. (I am Tivo'ing it in its entirety at home.) I realize that this throws the AP lessons off a bit, and fourth will be a teeny bit behind fifth, sixth, and seventh, but I do feel that this is an historic moment and watching the coverage together in a thoughtful environment is better than attempting to teach a distracted class with students surreptitiously checking their iPhones for coverage.

I know that many of you supported the other candidate during the hotly-contested election, and that we have had good-natured (I hope) debates about politics, but I hope we can get past our disagreements and look at this for what it is--a moment in American history that we are watching unfold before our eyes. So far, the defining historical moment for your generation seems to be the tragedy of September 11, 2001 and I hope that this can be a positive addition to your generation's memory banks. Therefore, you will have an opportunity to view this in room 313 (and all other rooms!) from 11:30-1:00, EST. I will give the necessary AP Lit-related information to my fourth period students at the start of the class, and if any of you would like to attend a class later in the afternoon to hear the lecture material, you are more than welcome to attend. Conversely, if you are in a class that does not show the inauguration during fourth period and you would like to see it, you are welcome to join us if your teacher gives you a pass. (Personally, when my Governor tells me to do something, and that sentiment is echoed by my Commissioner of Education and my Superintendent and then again by my Principal then I do it.)

Disclaimer: I not only voted for Mr. Obama, but I campaigned for him and volunteered, and I am so excited about this that I can't stand it. Differing opinions are welcome; disrespect to our new President is not. Let's all be adults about this, please.