The Brooklyn teacher whose students sent less-than-encouraging letters to troops in South Korea apologizes:
In a statement issued by the Department of Education, social studies teacher Alex Kunhardt said he regretted offending Pfc. Rob Jacobs. His statement, however, did not address whether he either coached the students or read their missives — which accused soldiers of committing atrocities in Iraq — before mailing them. The DOE, which is sending an apology to Jacobs and his family, declined comment.
"It was never my intention to demean or insult anyone," said Kunhardt..."I never meant for the words of my students to hurt any of our troops. The responsibility for this action is mine alone, and I apologize." Kunhardt mailed letters to Jacobs last month written by 21 of his sixth-graders at JHS 51 in Park Slope for an assignment. Nearly half of them derided President Bush or the Iraq war and accused soldiers of crimes such as killing civilians and destroying mosques. Even some of those that praised soldiers for their bravery were laced with divisive political rhetoric and ominous predictions.
Update: The Post prints Letters to the Editor on this topic today, most of which say we shouldn't "censor" the kids, or we should assume that the teacher "brainwashed" the students. But one letter writer who knows her history gets it exactly right:
One irony in this story is that JHS 51 is called "The William Alexander School." It is named after Lord Stirling, a general in Washington's army and hero of the Battle of Brooklyn in August 1776 — the turning point in the American Revolution.
At the Old Stone House (the historic house immediately across from the school) Stirling and 400 Maryland and Delaware militia held off the British army — thousands of trained professional soldiers — at the cost of the lives of most of the Americans. If not for their bravery, the British would have trapped Washington's army on Brooklyn Heights, probably ending the American Revolution then and there.
Students should express their opinions — that freedom is part of what the heroes of the Battle of Brooklyn fought for — but they might have done it more appropriately by writing to elected representatives and the press, rather than attacking a soldier.
Nancy Brenner, Manhattan
Bingo.
Posted by kswygert at February 23, 2005 09:57 AM