"I am disappointed that you do not recognise that Montessori has the antidote to racism and it has always had it..." [updated]

"To say that a person is inherently racist because of the group he belongs to (i.e. skin colour) is determinism — the view that a person has no free will, and therefore has no choice in how he thinks or acts. Determinism is the antithesis of Montessori’s view of human nature: 'Free choice is one of the highest of all mental processes.' 'A child chooses what helps him to construct himself.' (Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind) Social justice does not belong in Montessori.
    "I am disappointed that you do not recognise that Montessori has the antidote to racism and it has always had it — free will and individualism. Instead, you have turned Montessori into a tool for politics. Montessori is not politics, it is an educational approach for every individual child. It is universal for every child. Social justice, the idea that people are determined by their group or other circumstances, rather than their individual minds, will destroy Montessori."

~ Montessorian Charlotte Cushman, from her letter quoted in 'Montessori Teacher Fights 'Social Justice''

 UPDATE: Regular commenter Mark T has sent me a letter to the editor, published in the local Montessori Voices a few years ago, in which he addressed something very similar ...

Dear Editor

I was dismayed to read an article from Pam S---- in your previous issue that attempted to equate a Montessori class-room with the socialist welfare state.

That wasn't just because I disagreed strongly with the politics, but because it expressed a political view that is the antithesis of the value I see in a Montessori education. Examples include:

1. Montessori encourages self-reliance and self-responsibility. By contrast the welfare state encourages dependency and reliance on someone else to provide for you.
2. Montessori activities are self-correcting, encouraging children to learn from practical consequences. By contract the welfare state attempts to isolate people from the practical consequences of their actions. The welfare state version of the 'pink tower' would be a teacher rushing in every time a child gets the blocks out of sequence and holding the tower so it doesn't fall over - and then when we find the child learns nothing by this approach, concluding that more teacher interference is the answer.
3. Montessori protects the value each individual gets from completing their activity without interference from others. It is your activity and you take ownership of it. Contrast that with the welfare state where a large portion of what you create and earn is forcibly taken away from you in taxation.
4. Montessori generally allows children to go about their own individual activity when they want, and to engage in group activity when they want. The group activity is therefore spontaneous and genuine - not forced. This is in complete contrast to the welfare state where we are forced to support others whether they are deserving or not.

If we are going to talk politics there is a lot I could say on this topic - including the fact that welfare levels have not decreased since 1991 as Pam implies, and 5% of households now pay 47% of net tax in New Zealand. I could also explain how if this trend continues it will soon become unsustainable, as it already has in Greece.

But rather than go on about that, I suggest that your publication should leave politics out of it. We send our children to Montessori schools because we value the educational philosophy and the results it produces on our children. Anything published in Montessori Voices should focus on what we have in common, rather than dividing us with someone’s obvious political agenda.

Regards,
Mark T------
Christchurch 8024