U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan Confirmed by Senate

So why does the Dare Not Walk Alone blog care that Arne Duncan was confirmed U.S. Secretary of Education by the Senate (it happened yesterday, January 20, right after the inauguration of President Obama)?

Because Arne Duncan is going to be a great Secretary of Education? Well yes, we think he will be that. And we extend our congratulations on his appointment. But we also care because he is one of a number of public officials who in the past have been very supportive of the Dare Not Walk Alone project and whose profile has been rising of late. No, we're not suggesting that endorsing Dare Not Walk Alone will boost your standing as a politician or public servant. What we are saying is that our country is changing, and for the better!

We didn't post anything yesterday, Inauguration Day, because we were too caught up in the emotion of the day. As another public servant and DNWA supporter, who was there at the capitol yesterday, said to me today: "Words alone cannot express...Words alone cannot express..." Yes, he said it twice, and that really made the point.

Then he said he had to go, he was due to meet with the President. And too late I though to ask him: "Do you have a copy of the DVD you can give him?" Darn! Maybe next time.
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DNWA as Education

Just prior to the Cinequest Film Festival in San Jose, Director Jeremy Dean toured many of the historic black colleges in Florida to show the film to students and faculty. These viewings were facilitated by Florida Senator Tony Hill (www.flsenate.gov/legislators/Senate/S01).

ALL the viewings at the colleges were met with rave reviews and tremendous enthusiasm. What's even better, though, is the fact that DNWA gets people talking again ... whether we like it or not, racism is rampant in America and we have to expose it, show it for what it is, before we can get past it. It's like the elephant in the room that no one wants to mention. It's there. It's big. And it's leaving big turds everywhere. Somehow we, as individuals, have to find our own ways of eradicating racism. Education is definiately one of the methods we can use to start meaningful discussions.

Speaking of education, Sen. Hill is talking about introducing a bill in the Senate that would make DNWA part of the yearly school curriculum. That means that every student in Florida would be REQUIRED to view DNWA. How cool is that?

Let us know if you have other ideas on how to expand viewership of DNWA.