Choose one:
To Teach: The Journey of a Teacher (Teachers College Press)
A Kind and Just Parent:The Children of Juvenile Court (Beacon)
Teaching Toward Freedom: Moral Commitment and Ethical Action in the Classroom (Beacon)
City Kids/ City Schools (The New Press)
Then make up your own mind, and send me a comment.
Bill Ayers 
As a University of Nebraska alum (CEHS) and now a graduate student at the University of Minnesota, I am beginning to learn that the values and morals of the person speaking lies implicitly in each word. I am also learning that taking care in thought, before speaking, while speaking, or listening to others is simply a holistic approach and attitude; viewing situations through an economical, political, social, and cultural lens. Those who believe in practicing a holistic approach to thinking and speaking are more apt to make thoughtful and respectful decisions. The decisions may not be favored by everyone (such as UNL canceling Ayers visit), but the intricacy of contemplation wound in the decision is respectable. However, in this case, if UNL had thoughtful and reasonable reasons for uninviting Ayers, other than “alumni said they would withhold financial contributions to the university”, I would understand. This is obviously not the case.
I am truly struggling with the concept that a person or group of human beings, due to political beliefs, would eliminate opportunity for students to learn at an institution of higher education. I am in the midst of reading Ayers book, On the Side of the Child, and would benefit from hearing his ideas, lived experiences, and knowledge of education. Ayers may have a past; nevertheless, his present choice of language concerning education would be highly notable.
An example of a human being, who (from observation) has yet to look through a holistic lens, is Governor Dave Heineman. In the article above, he stated, “This is an embarrassment to the University of Nebraska and the State of Nebraska.” He also said, “Bill Ayers is a well-known radical who should never have been invited to the University of Nebraska.” Governor Heineman, you are an educator, whether you see yourself as an educator or not. You make decisions everyday that effect those around you. We learn from you and I cannot thank you enough for showing me, more than ever that “whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill”(Budha).
Even if Ayers was not scheduled to speak about education, but rather his past, I have no doubt that each word that he speaks would have a valuable story of its own. And each story would provide a new thought to ponder.
I will leave you with a quote from a letter a classmate sent me this week regarding Bill Ayers. I ask that when reading this quote, read the words through a holistic lens, and let the words soak into your thoughts…just then, maybe then, will you see the possibility for change…
“All citizens, but particularly teachers and scholars, are called upon to challenge orthodoxy, dogma, and mindless complacency, to be skeptical of authoritative claims, to interrogate and trouble the given and the taken-for-granted. Without critical dialogue and dissent we would likely be burning witches and enslaving our fellow human beings to this day. The growth of knowledge, insight, and understanding—the possibility of change—depends on that kind of effort, and the inevitable clash of ideas that follows should be celebrated and nourished rather than crushed. Teachers have a heavy responsibility, a moral obligation, to organize classrooms as sites of open discussion, free of coercion or intimidation. By all accounts Professor Ayers meets this standard.” ~ Friends and supporters of Bill Ayers (UIC)
Professor,
I am looking foreword to reading more of your books, and learning from your lived experiences. Thanks.
Lizzy
What an ass-hole you are. Fuckin’ terrorist! Only in America could you have a fuckin’state job. Spolied bitch.
YOU ARE A F#$%ING A-HOLE!
spoiled
Hey Bill;
Nice house and neighborhood for a Marxist, would you ever accept the lifestyle that you would like to impose on the proletariat?
Bill, what goes around, comes around.
Professor Ayers, I don’t know if you’ll read this (71 comments from a weak old post), but I just want to say sorry for everything that the last couple of months have brought you. It really bothers me, all of this, what people are doing to you. I think you were right when you said we didn’t do enough. We didn’t do enough to help people, to change people, to show that people are capable of change. I don’t know, maybe I’m idealistic, stupid, and naive, but I can’t help but think that it’s supposed to be better than this. We’re not supposed to be bickering with each other over petty things, and if that’s human nature, maybe we should change it. Still though. at the very bottom of everything, I think people are basically good, and I hope you still do, too.
Keep hope, sir.
So when your not blowing shit up you are a hack author too?
I hear when you were a radical in the Weather Underground you advocated the genocide of 25 million US citizens that were labeled ‘capitalists’. I sincerely hope there will be a purge of the university system in the coming years. I’ve realized the leftist professors like yourself are weak annoyances and by no means are the engine of the economy. University professors are responsible for turning out the type of people that are ruining Wall Street with their greed. Socialists will never give power to the people that they say they’ll give because they’re scared of the people having too much power.
It’s sick to see these weak minded individuals here fawning over you like an icon of modern thought. They seem like mindless chickens pecking at the feed you give them.
I don’t believe you are teaching “Freedom” What I see from your writing is a teaching to slavery of a government.