Fargo
After reading the article, "Event bars Fargo teacher," I felt it necessary to throw my opinion into the undoubtedly busy discussion that this article must have caused. The rejection of Beth Ekre (or, as I called her back when she was my teacher at Hawthorne elementary, Mrs. G) from the "Celebration of Excellence" social is a truly fantastic display of the hypocritical nature of the North Dakota Education Association and unfortunately the union system in America today.
At one point in time unions were created to speak for those whose voices fell upon the deaf ears of business executives. Their creation and implementations across the country brought peace of mind to millions of Americans looking to simply "get by."
Unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly clear that certain organizations are treating people with a "with us or against us" mentality. I cannot tell you much about Ekre personally or even whether I would agree with her politically on any issue. However, I can tell you that to this day, 14 years after she was my teacher, her ability to pull the best out of her young students and the joy she brought to her classrooms is proof positive that she was, and as her award seems to suggest, still is one of the truly gifted educators of our community.
Whether Linda Harsche was only doing what she was told or not, she should be ashamed of herself for embarrassing such a quality teacher. It is terrifying to think that in our country after a landmark election that the right to free speech and the cultivation of one's own opinion is being shot down by those so closely involved with the education of our communities' children.
