Portia by Denise Turney

Author:Denise Turney
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction & Literature
Publisher: eBookIt.com
Published: 2021-03-26T00:00:00+00:00

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Rebecca stood with her feet spread apart. She inhaled deeply before she spoke. “A Civil Rights Act was passed by Congress in 1964. Title VI of that Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in federally assisted programs. Section 601 of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination by any organization based on race, color, or national origin receiving financial assistance from the federal . . .”

She hushed before she offered, “Good afternoon, Students. Be attentive.” She raised her right index finger. “Examine the language. During today’s class I hope to persuade you to believe that we are accountable for the things we say, the things we use English to convey or express. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 tells us that we can be punished for discriminating, and, of course, discrimination can be verbal.” She walked around her desk and stood in the center of the room. “I read those sections of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act to you because I know it’s unlikely that you will read them yourselves. You trust your congressmen and congresswomen.” She grinned. “It’s imperative that you familiarize yourselves with a few of our country’s laws. But that’s not what I’m driving at. To iterate, during today’s class, I’m going to illustrate the power of words. How we say or write things and when we say or write things is crucial. English is important. So often language is the vital organ in our triumphs.” She strolled back to her desk and stood behind it. “I hope I’ve impressed the attorney in each of you. I know you’re anxious to present your summaries on Richard Wright’s Native Son.” She chuckled. “After teaching English for twenty-seven years, I know how eager students are to stand before their classmates and speak.” She grinned shamelessly. “I’m ready to listen to your summaries. I know each of you is well prepared.” She rounded the corner of her desk and walked to the center of the room. At the room’s center, she stilled her feet. “Calvin!”

Calvin jumped.

“Dana!”

Dana held her breath.

“Lisa!”

Lisa froze.

“One of you. Somebody.” She waited. “Somebody, anybody, get up. I want to hear a summary.” She paced the front of the room. “David.”

David wore an I-don’t-believe-Mrs.Fowler-called-on-me expression.

She nodded at David’s glare. “Yes, Sir. You. Yes, David. I called on you.”

David muttered, “Ahhh.”

She peered at him. “David, before this school year is over, you and every student in this classroom will learn to be confident. You will stop cowering when I call upon you to speak before your classmates, because you will have a firm grasp of the English language. I know this is the second week of the school year, but as I said last week, my classes consists of fifty percent reading, twenty-five percent writing and twenty-five percent public speaking. So, David, stand up and read me your summary.”

David’s eyes were downcast. When he stood, he held, between quivering fingers, the three sheets of ruled notebook paper his summary was written on. “Native Son, authored by Richard Wright .

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