Wow! That is the first reaction that I have to the webinar Repurposing Our Pedagogies. This webinar challenges you to unpack what it truly means to be not only be non-racist, but to take it a step further and become antiracist. Antiracism is the notion that one can identify racism, describe it and have the courage to dismantle it. Such teachings are known as abolitionist teachings. The term itself was completely new to me. The premise of the teaching is built on the creativity, imagination, boldness, ingenuity, and rebellious spirit and methods of abolitionists to demand and fight for an educational system where all students are thriving, not simply surviving.

I can not help but to connect such notions to the blog I wrote about identifying what care looked like in education. In my blog I recollected a childhood memory of a middle school friend named Jansel Richards. He was a Dominican young man who had a relentless passion rap and the hip hop culture. He also possessed an undeniable talent for DJ'ing. I spoke of how he often interrupted class by rapping lyrics of current artists or free-styling, which is a form of impromptu rap. He also had no fear challenging the teacher when he didn't agree with her teachings. He was so passionate about his craft that he even convinced our English teacher to allow him to sell his first mixtape in class for $3. Which turned out to be an isolated situation because this same teacher often kicked Jansel out of class. Sending him to the office, which often resulted in more severe punishments, such as suspension.

I am in awe at the fact that unbeknownst to he or I, his behavior was in fact the groundwork for abolition culture. Again, I struggle to imagine the evolution and growth that could have taken place within this young man, had our teacher done the work to repurpose the traditional educational pedagogies and appreciated his form of expression as a different form of learning and cultural awareness. Where would he be?

After doing this work around Repurposing Our Pedagogies, I must say I am grateful for the gift of education. I feel empowered with context to describe the educational inequalities I have been able to identify from an early age. My awareness of the differences has fueled my courage and drive to challenge and fight for the importance of educational equality. In my opinion, as in the case of my friend Jansel, it may mean the difference between life and death.

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