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When Samuel Jackson asked U.S. Rep. Ray LaHood to
support his “Thousand Fathers March” initiative, Jackson was
taken aback by the congressman’s response. “How much do you need?” LaHood asked.
“Nothing,” Jackson replied, a response
that left LaHood, a former schoolteacher, equally shocked. Although modeled on similar endeavors, which entail
moving busloads of people from all over the nation to one symbolic
destination, the fathers’ march in Springfield, which is scheduled to
take place on Thursday, Aug. 23, will simply involve a critical mass of
dads taking their kids on the first day of school. Eloise Baird, president of Springfield Parents for
Public Schools, which is organizing the event, says that male involvement
in children’s education can deliver a powerful message.
The organization, founded in 2000 to serve as
clearinghouse for District 186 information, began adding programming aimed
at men two years ago. Jackson, who heads the group’s Fathers’
Initiative, started planning the march this spring. On the national level, the Chicago-based Black Star
Project organizes an annual Million Father March, targeted at
African-American fathers. Between 30,000 and 40,000 participants took
children to school in Chicago last year, the group reports. “Traditionally moms are the ones most involved
in a child’s education. When it comes to men and fathers, those
groups aren’t being courted,” Jackson says.
Baird adds that all men, not just dads, are encouraged
to participate in the march. Springfield Mayor Tim Davlin, for example, has
pledged to take three of his grandchildren to the first day of school. More than 100 people have agreed to march in
Springfield, but Baird and Jackson believe that many more will just do it
without officially signing up. “By fathers’ taking kids to school, it
gives dads an opportunity to introduce themselves to teachers,”
Jackson says, “and kids who know their fathers are checking up on
them, they’re more prone to do right.”
Contact R.L. Nave at rnave@illinoistimes.com.
This article appears in Aug 9-15, 2007.
