Postville Panel Reaction

What happened in Postville is something that should awaken us to the importance of a good education. On May 12th of this year 900 armed men came into Postville and arrested 389 people. Is that an excessive amount of men with semi-automatics to apprehend working people? I think so. Our government has treated them as criminals, they have been accused of ID theft and being in the country illegally. There is so much about Postville that I did not know until I went to the Panel. This is where I see teachers work become important. It is my job as a future educator to encourage my students to be lifelong learners, and as a teacher to be a lifelong learner myself. So many people do not know what happened, why it was significant or the means by which it was done. Things have not just gone back to normal there, it is a city that has been devastated, the people are devistated. Imagine coming to a country where people are supposed to be safe and experiencing treatment similar to that which you were hoping you had escaped. Many, many children do not know where their parents are, much less know when or if they will ever see them again. Families have been ripped appart and the women and children have been left waiting... They cannot work and they cannot leave, forced to remain in the place where they are constantly reminded of the horrors of that day they have nothing contructive to do. Now should we want to know why our government handled this situation in this way? Yes. How do we go about understanding our response and the actions we have taken on illegal immegration. We must look to the past to understand policies today. My generation and the generation for whose education I am responsible for can change policies. It is my job to encourage my students to learn so they might contribute to improving society.