Robinson High School in Little Rock

[Bumper]

9TH BATTALION COMBAT ENGINEERS 1ST MARINE DIVISION

September of 2005, on the first day of school, Martha Cothren, a social studies school teacher at Robinson High School in Little Rock, did something not to be forgotten. On the first day of school, with permission of the school superintendent, the principal and the building supervisor, she took all of the desks out of the classroom.

The kids came into first period, they walked in, there were no desks. They obviously looked around and said, "Ms. Cothren, where's our desk?" And she said, "You can't have a desk until you tell me how you earn them."

They thought, "Well, maybe it's our grades."
"No," she said.
"Maybe it's our behavior."
And she told them, "No, it's not even your behavior."

And so they came and went in the first period, still no desks in the classroom. Second period, same thing, third period. By early afternoon television news crews had gathered in Ms. Cothren's class to find out about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of the classroom. The last period of the day, Martha Cothren gathered her class. They were at this time sitting on the floor around the sides of the room. And she says, "Throughout the day no one has really understood how you earn the desks that sit in this classroom ordinarily." She said, "Now I'm going to tell you."

Martha Cothren went over to the door of her classroom and opened it, and as she did 27 U.S. veterans, wearing their uniforms, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. And they placed those school desks in rows, and then they stood along the wall. And by the time they had finished placing those desks; those kids for the first time I think perhaps in their lives understood how they earned those desks.

Martha said, "You don't have to earn those desks. These guys did it for you. They put them out there for you, but it's up to you to sit here responsibly to learn, to be good students and good citizens, because they paid a price for you to have that desk, and don't ever forget it."

My friend, I think sometimes we forget that the freedoms that we have are freedoms not because of celebrities. The freedoms are because of ordinary people who did extraordinary things, who loved this country more than life itself, and who not only earned a school desk for a kid at the Robinson High School in Little Rock, but who earned a seat for you and me to enjoy this great land we call home, this wonderful nation that we better love enough to protect and preserve with the kind of conservative, solid values and principles that made us a great nation.

"We live in the Land of the Free because of the brave"
Remember our Troops...

More information on Snopes

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[dr_cmg]

Thanks, Bumper. You made my day with this post.

[SixBravo]

Amen. Wish all teachers had the guts to do that.

[4my son]

Thanks Bumper,

That was a nice way to start the day.

This one is going to be e-mail to all my friends.

Sounds like a candidate for Teacher of the year.

[Old Chief]

Thanks Bumper for the reality check. The point is well taken "We live in the land of the free because of the Brave."

[Tangle]

Wow! Cold chills! Great lesson!

[pgrass101]

I am so glad that is true.

That is a lesson that needs to be taught in every class

[rstickle]

What a teaching point! That was a great post.

[raevan]

Thanks Bumper, we need more wakeup calls such as that to reminde all citizens of what patriotism is about.

[PapaScout]

Thanks Bumper. Great post.

[Tom G]

Great post. If only we had more teachers like that. It sure gets the point across.

[P95Carry]

I like that - A LOT!!

Thx Bumper - a great demonstration lesson that could be, to bring home what is so often totally forgotten.

[BruceGibson]

Brilliant. That's one of the best things I've read.

[SIXTO]

Bruce hit the nail on the head. Nothing else sums it up other than brilliant.

I'm suprised there is not some pencil necked do gooder parents trying to get this teacher fired.

[retsupt99]

A great lesson...

ret