“name-brand kindergarten.”

This is crucial. Crucial, crucial, crucial.

So many of my peers are going to leave the city as soon as their kids turn 4, or turn to charters or private school. Your kid’s life is your choice, but they’re not the only kid out there. And there is compelling evidence that desegregation of public schools increases educational outcomes for all students involved.

And yet the young “New Philadelphians” who have moved here and willed the city to mold itself to their specifications don’t plan on investing in public education. They don’t seem to invest in much outside of their own self-interests, in a city where poverty engulfs swaths of the city blocks outside of their own enclaves. Not their problem.

freshmen

Sometimes you find yourself yelling at a kid, “I don’t care how many shoes you’re wearing, get to class on time.”

Nothing in college taught me about that.

bye boy

(in response to deleted and overly aggressive comments, name-calling and inappropriate pictures sent to my actual email)

Too busy doing actual work to help improve the world (maybe try it) to bother much with this, but let me just reiterate that if you cannot see where this criticism comes from, you are not the kind of person I have any desire to engage with, so kindly go elsewhere.

Also, fun note: not a journalist! Not a professional writer or reporter! Never claimed to be! Ended up pushing forward a conversation that was important to me. Very glad I did. Now happily letting more qualified activists take up the fight. This blog has 5 posts and one is about my cat, so if you’re crazy up in arms, maybe attempt to calm yourself down a bit and wonder why you’re soooo offended.

No help at all

I’ve argued on the Internet a lot today. If anyone wants to reach me, please contact Augustus Conklin, my publicist/spokesman.

gentleman lawyer cat

He doesn’t have email or a phone number (so old-school, right?!), but you can usually find him in the window of my house.

p.s. I’m at least 70% sure he’s a Republican (look at that bow tie, some serious Tucker Carlson vibes), but totally unsatisfied with the field of presidential nominees.

Fix it.

To Lindsey Scannapieco and Scout Ltd (which, maaaaybe not the best name for a company post-“Go Set a Watchman):

If you want to fix it, talk to these groups. Let them tell you what they want and need, and what they can contribute, for themselves. Make your building a real community.

SEAMAAC

Asian Americans United

Puentes de Salud

Seventh Street Community Civic Organization

United Communities of South Philadelphia

Centro Cultural Mexicano

Maybe even reach out to some local nonprofits like Mighty Writers South. This can still be fixed. Please try to fix it.