All of our kids, ready for life
Rise Up for Students is a blog advocating for racial equity and radical empathy in our schools, in Seattle and beyond
Black History Today, created by Marcus Harden in honor of Black History Month, pays tribute to the living legacy of Black history in our community and recognizes the people like Rashiid Coleman who are boldly shaping the future. The 2024 installment marks the sixth Black History Today series published on Rise Up for Students since 2018.
Read MoreIn the early weeks of online learning, a Portland middle-school teacher finds that his students’ personal growth is inspiring hope for the future and offering certainty during unsteady times. Through this necessary period of solitude, of living simply in shared sacrifice, people young and old “are learning about themselves and what is important in life.”
Read MoreBy Ryan Flesch
It was Nov. 6, 2016. I had spent three months following the Water Protectors camping out in the Standing Rock reservation in North Dakota on social media, and listening quietly to the intellect of my heart. My heart wanted me there, so I posted to social media: “I have spent too much time sitting in the comfort of my own home saying to myself that something I see is wrong. I'm getting up and I'm going to Standing Rock to show my support with my life, not the share button.”
Read MoreBack in 2010, I saw the band Frightened Rabbit play a beautiful show at a little venue in Portland called Berbati’s Pan.
I’d been listening to their album, The Midnight Organ Fight, almost non-stop for a long time at that point. It’s such a sad set of songs, but so earnest. So beautiful in their vulnerability and in lead singer/songwriter Scott Hutchison’s way of describing heartbreak, loss, depression and thoughts of suicide that is intimately relatable and also unlike I’ve ever heard it said before.
Scott went missing a couple days ago, with friends and family describing him as having been in a “fragile state.” Police in Scotland found his body today. A few days ago, he and I were both 36. Now he was 36, and I still am.
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Black History Today, created by Marcus Harden in honor of Black History Month, pays tribute to the living legacy of Black history in our community and recognizes the people among us who are boldly shaping the future. The long-running series has continued to grow and now lives as an exhibit at the Northwest African American Museum in Seattle.