AUTOCRATIC FOR THE PEOPLE

As a teacher new to the Portland school system this past year, I hope that Amrita Bruce’s account of the middle-school lunch program, “Lunch-time Blues” (July 20, 2001), might serve as a call to action.

From my first day at King Middle School I have shared Ms. Bruce’s concern with both the inferior quality of the food served in Portland’s middle schools and the brevity of the lunch period (20 minutes at King, minus the five minutes spent going back and forth from the classroom).

When I queried my students about the lunches, they expressed deep dissatisfaction along with an accompanying attitude of resignation over the potential for change. A group of energized students eventually drafted a petition proposing a study committee to explore alternatives to the present system. The petition was signed by over three quarters of the student body. Yet when it was presented to the school advisory board (a standing committee that tellingly, at King, has no student representatives), it was summarily dismissed as “something we don’t have time for.” The school principal characterized the school lunch program as “ancillary” to the mission of the school. I dissented, arguing that feeding our students a healthy, sustaining lunch was for some of them, some of the time, one of the most beneficial things we might accomplish.

Many days I witnessed in my students the lassitude and low-energy that can result from poor nutrition. More disturbing, these individuals were disproportionately from the lower reaches of the socioeconomic stratum. The question must be raised whether this particular school’s support for an unacceptable status quo in the lunchroom might actually be failing to serve those students most in need.

Perhaps as pertinent to this debate is the message we send to our students when their attempt to join the community through dialogue is met by an intransigent refusal to include dissenting voices in the discussion (if indeed, such discussion is allowed at all). As teachers and educators one of the most profound ways we impact our students’ lives is by offering a model of how adults act and interact. If students encounter an imperious and autocratic attitude for those in positions of authority, they will see behind the curtain. Sadly, they will also become more cynical and skeptical of the prospects for building community and a genuinely democratic society. We can and must do better.

Bill Lundgen

Portland

PORTLAND NEEDS A HERO

I just could not believe when I read in your very insightful article, “No harm, no foul” (July 13, 2001), that Representative Michael Quint was absent for so many environmental votes. So, I went to the Web-site you suggested www.maineenvironment.orrg, to see for myself. Representative Quint missed five of the 10 most important environmental votes this past session!!! As I looked a little deeper, I realized that there are only two other members (out of 151) with worse attendance. I am not sure what Mr. Quint is doing with his time, but it is not in the public service that he was elected for. This is clearly not the type of leadership I look for, nor expect for our elected official. In fact, it is completely and totally unacceptable.

Reading this also helped to clarify why I sincerely and wholeheartedly hope that Ethan Strimling decides to take the leap and run for the State Senate. His roots in this city, his extensive record at Portland West, and his gleaming credentials for working tirelessly on progressive issues convince me that he is exactly the kind of leader Portland needs. We’re running a bit short of heroes lately. That is not only a solid and honorable progressive, he is an incredibly hard worker who will fight for the issues Portland really cares about. One thing for sure is that Mr. Strimling, unlike Mr. Quint, will never miss the chance to stand up and be counted.

I write this letter, in part out of disgust, but also to encourage and inspire the citizens of Portland to rally behind Ethan Strimling and get him to run. Nothing is going to happen in this great democracy of ours, unless we take an active interest in getting the right people elected and holding them accountable.

These lazy self-serving politicians have got to go!

Laurence A. Kelly

Portland

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