October 8, 2001

In the Aftermath of September 11th, Must Education Be Forgotten?

At this very difficult time for the United States and other democratic nations, I would like to take this opportunity to share some personal thoughts: 

First, may I express my deep appreciation as a U.S. citizen for the strong resolution, as adopted by the 28th special session of the General Assembly of the OAS, condemning the terrorist acts that occurred in the U.S. on September 11.  I also commend the resolution of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the member states reaffirming the importance of hemispheric cooperation to prevent, combat, and eliminate terrorism.  Additionally, I greatly appreciate and was moved by the heartfelt and sincere statements of friendship and support for the U.S. during the Permanent Council meeting of September 21, 2001.

In all of our work and dedication in public service, each choosing different paths to follow, I hope you will agree most have learned that, if we are to help the next generation come into a saner, safer, and more stable society, we must continue to learn from past mistakes.  We do find, unfortunately, that every generation harbors a few individuals with so much hatred against a sector of society, be it ethnic, racial, religious, or cultural, that they will seek to carry out horrendous, barbaric acts of terrorism, such as those experienced in the past and most recently those perpetrated in the United States on innocent citizens.

While I personally, strongly support the military, political, and economic actions of my government, as well as those of the world wide coalition of nations’, clergy, the private sector, and international organizations’, it seems to me that we may be on the brink of repeating history by omission.  In many instances, when the world or a nation rises up and forms coalitions to take military, political, and economic action, the costs and enormous leadership efforts involved often leave education on the back-burner, if not entirely off the agenda.

Too often, history demonstrates that some radical or fanatical individuals acquire leadership skills--oratorical, religious, charismatic--which appeal largely to the downtrodden, the hopeless, and the helpless who see nothing for their or their children’s futures but hunger, ignorance, and poverty.  Without a bold, long-term education strategy, does this leave the leadership’s campaign to eliminate terrorism with its huge costs in dollars and human resources consigned to the present alone?  Where will the future leaders come from?  Will the next generation harbor more or less hopeless, hungry, uneducated, poverty stricken followers only to be left to recruitment by some fanatical terrorist?

Leaders of small and large countries, international organizations, and in all sectors of society, who continue to have a deep commitment to the pivotal role education has in strengthening democracy and economic development must never forget the power of investments in education.  If they try to bring together political, military, and economic forces without joining education, they are likely, at best, to achieve short-term success.  More likely however, are we dooming the next generation only to repeat history?

This strike against terrorism with political, military, and economic policies forms a strong, albeit, three-legged stool.  Can it hold the weight of the future?  In times of long-term crises and challenges, historically the U.S. has always included education support to bring about long-range change.  The GI Bill of Rights provided four years of higher education benefits for all World War II veterans, which, with its huge cost, was paid back threefold with the taxes from professional and worker higher wage earnings; the Communications Satellite Act brought the world together including the developing nations, for education and economic development in the height of the Cold War and following the Cuban Missile Crisis; the US Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) eliminated race and poverty as criteria for failure to gain access to schooling while Congress’ National Defense Act set standards and funding for access to higher education nationally; and in response to the most recent September 11 tragedy, the New York Governor announced that the tens of thousands of children who have lost one or both of their parents, or who have become homeless as a result of the recent scourge of terrorism on the World Trade Center, are now guaranteed four years of free college, housing, and transportation.  In addition to Governor Pataki, President Bush, most leaders, and parents know and fear the consequences of leaving children hopeless for the future.

In line with these great efforts, I urge all International and Intergovernmental organizations, Civil Society organizations and Education Officials dedicated to the education goals of the Summits of the Americas and World Peace to recommit and hasten their efforts to assure all children access to basic quality education in this hemisphere.

Debates will continue over testing, teacher training, standards, data collection, regulations, whether math, science, or history is more important, and/or cultural and linguistic differences, so be it!  The greater the numbers of students with access and use of telecommunications, so too the greater the number of debates over what is best, so be it!  Few, however, will disagree that access to information and education is more likely to breed hope and opportunity, rather than hate and despair!

On the one hand, it is no surprise that in this century’s civilized society, those with the where-with-all will continue to support research, growth, and benefit from technology user tools, such as Web pages/portals, computers, hardware, and software, and technologies yet to come.  On the other hand, the last forty years has taught us that the presence of technology is without benefit unless applied.  For those without the where-with-all or without electricity, i.e., those in poverty and hunger, in small, rural, and indigenous communities, the dumping of inert user technologies without the ability to access outside useful information, for all intents and purposes, is of little value or benefit.  How then to lessen rather than expand the numbers of hopeless followers and recruits susceptible to fanatical leadership?

I urge the Ambassadors and Ministers to recommit the resolve of the OAS, as the house of the leaders of the Western Hemisphere, to its education mission: to resolve their support of military, political, economic, and education efforts; to hasten education activities toward bringing about and effecting an integrated hemispheric infrastructure, an international electronic highway for all public goods, i.e., education, health care, and other public services; to encourage the lending institutions to increase grant making, not loans, to empower their citizens and next generations with hope for their future; and to enable the leaders of the Western Hemisphere to achieve their goals for basic quality education for all Americas' children by 2010.

In the midst of these costly campaigns addressing what we all believe to be “not just America’s problem,” we must remain committed to a sustained effort to eradicate ignorance, illiteracy, and hopelessness as one of the most effective and long-lasting actions we can take.  Without a bold hemispheric plan to connect all people with education and other public service needs and demands, we face less of a chance of success in assuring hope and opportunity for the future. 

Writer
Shelly Weinstein

National Education Telecommunications Organization/Education Satellite
Email: edsatamericas@netoedsat.org