My supreme interest in the World Cup - an event I haven't really cared deeply about before now - might have something to do with the boredom/panic about my own work. I realize that but it's hard to combat. Things are proceeding and I *might* even have a place to live in Ottawa and a new passport soon, so fingers crossed.
A recent email in my inbox reminded me how about when I first got to Bmore and was excited because I saw signs up for a Free School right across the street from our apartment building. Wonderful, right? We're fairly close to some not-so-prosperous neighborhoods and a free school sounds like just the thing: a place where people can learn English, learn how to fill out tax returns and other government documents, get job applications together, prepare for the GED, read better, learn math, useful shit like that. Again, wonderful, right?
I signed up for their email list, a believer. The rhetoric is powerful and seductive! "The Baltimore Free School is a grassroots, volunteer-run and community-funded project, based at 1323 N. Calvert. St. Building upon a long tradition of horizontal organizing, collaborative learning and participatory education, we believe that the empowerment of people of all ages and backgrounds to share and learn is vital to the health of any community. To that end, we work toward creating a space where the exchange of ideas can occur without the exchange of money; a space where we can learn to relate to each other in new and meaningful ways. By building this infrastructure, we hope to form a microcosm of the world in which we want to live."
But the reality set in. Here's what's being offered at present: magazine journalism, gardening workshop, B More Fat& Queer Book Club, improv comedy, and hatha yoga. This follows up their wildly successful past semesters which included: Gurlesque A Go-Go: A Bold Trend in Contemporary Poetry, Five Element Theory: A Workshop on Five Element Theory of Chinese Medicine, Radical Geography, and Clown: An introduction into the methods of Clown based on techniques from Jacques Lecoq. To be fair, there were a couple of tax preparation courses in there. As well as Irish Rebellion History, Baby carriers & babywearing: cuddling your kids with your hands free, Anarchism Study Group, Are Children Naturally Racist or Non-racist? What the Research Shows, and Surrealist Games. So, only the essentials. Oh yeah, and the ever-popular BFS Outreach Committee Meeting.
My favorite email updates are about the frequent "fundraisers" they've held, called Baltimore Free School Dances! Which are basically raves featuring local entertainment (ie/ someone's friend who wants their band promoted). They require $5 or food bank donations or something like that as admission = fundraising. "From the cake, punch, and chaperones (yes, chaperones) to the irresistable dance tunes of The Bellevederes and DJ Jason Willett and a rare performance by Smash Hits, this party's shaping up to be a total blast. Please pass the word on- the more people come get down, the more fun we'll all have and the more funds we'll raise to keep the BFS doors open for anyone to teach or take a class for free!" Other highlights include Trivia Night plus "beverages"!
Sometimes the updates contain pictures:
It's just so fucking cool to, like, make a difference and stuff! Yes, from what I can tell, essentially the BFS is an excuse for a bunch of hipster asshats to sit around and get high, talk about their "politics," recycle, and plan awesome raves. In other words, it's grad school.
I'm not saying that poor people should not learn about semiotics, but is that really the priority, BFS? Really? I know, I shouldn't be hypercritical of people who are trying to effect change, even if it's so subtle you might blink and miss it, but the BFS update in my inbox just set me off. It's hard to know who to support, right? March of Dimes, I'm looking at you.
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