IN NORMAL TIMES, we would spend the last class day talking about the same thing we talked about on the first day of class: What makes us human? Over the semester we have tackled this from numerous angles and interrogated the idea of how we can define something so complex yet also so integral to anthropology.
Reading the news it is easy to get sad, depressed, and fairly pessimistic about our species. Things we thought mattered seem to be less important and the faith we have in institutions to protect us is mostly gone. However, it is important in these times to remember we are not the worst of us. One lesson we have learned is that our ancestors survived because of their ability to form complex social networks & help each other. We can, in fact, be the best of us. Embracing our common humanity, being kind when we can, and supporting our friends and family are the true signs of strength.
Please remember that you didn’t simply “learn at home” or “take online classes for half the semester.” You did these things during a freaking global pandemic. Some of you have lost loved ones, been dealing with losing your job, are working in environments not suited to class work, and are struggling to motivate yourselves to do anything. My heart breaks for all of your changed plans, missed opportunities, and uncertainty.
There is a lot I want to say about what is going on but I don’t really have the right words now. Even though the class is ending, please know that I am still here for you. As a professor I don’t make a lot of money, but I am paid very well because I get the chance to work, laugh, think, and learn with all of you.
And, if you don’t believe me, maybe Rainbow Dash can convince you:
The teacher is of course an artist, but being an artist does not mean that he or she can make the profile, can shape the students. What the educator does in teaching is to make it possible for the students to become themselves. And in doing so, he or she lives the experience of relating democratically as authority with the freedom of the student.
- Paulo Freire