Category Archives: Education & Teaching

Writing on teaching, learning, schools, higher education, pedagogy, mentoring, intellectual development, and the role of education in personal and social transformation.

Words Matter: Another Look at the Question of Language, by Eddie Ellis, President, Center for NuLeadership on Urban Solutions

Posted on December 17, 2017 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

We need to be constantly reminded about this language: Words matter.  They shape perceptions and understanding, both of past and present events and of future possibilities and, therefore, future events.  Semantic and public acceptance of terms like “formerly incarcerated” or … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Research & Lived Expertise, Education & Teaching, Justice Chronicles, Osborne Association, Reentry | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Miseducation of New York City’s Public School Children

Posted on November 10, 2015 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Last Sunday (11/01/2015) I read an interesting opinion piece in the Daily News, “Worms in the Apple: A observer of the New York City schools sees a system infected, over three decades, with two stubborn problems,” (one, a “retrograde teachers’ … Continue reading →

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Fabricated Racism?

Posted on June 1, 2015 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Bill O’Reilly, well known Republican hack, in today’s (06-01-15) amNewYork column, “City Council sees racism at every turn,” writes about “fabricated racism.” O’Reilly is looking at the City Council’s proposed response to the fact that, according to a UCLA study, … Continue reading →

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Two Classic Speeches on Voting

Posted on October 31, 2014 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

With Election Day right around the corner, now is a good time to read or re-read two pieces, Frederick Douglass’ “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro,” given on July 5, 1852, and Malcolm X’s “The Ballot or the … Continue reading →

Posted in Black patriotism, Education & Teaching, John F. Kennedy, Justice Chronicles, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Patriotism, Politics & Public Affairs, Revolution | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Frederick Douglass’ “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro” (July 5, 1852)

Posted on October 31, 2014 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Mr. President, Friends and Fellow Citizens: He who could address this audience without a quailing sensation, has stronger nerves than I have. I do not remember ever to have appeared as a speaker before any assembly more shrinkingly, nor with … Continue reading →

Posted in Black patriotism, Education & Teaching, Politics & Public Affairs, Revolution, Slavery | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Andrew the Ambitious

Posted on April 3, 2014 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Nearly two months ago, when Andrew Cuomo, New York’s Governor, announced that he would use public money to finance higher education in prison, in some quarters people thought that the state was finally wising up and was going to be … Continue reading →

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