By Charisse Carney-Nunes
For News One March 9, 2010 6:00 pm
This week marks the 35th commemoration of International Women’s Day (Monday), celebrated by the United Nations. This year’s theme is “Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities, Progress for all.” As a woman, I am grateful that for one day out of 365, women are recognized for our achievements. But outside of this special day and month – March is also Women’s History Month – I find myself humming Sojourner Truth’s tune, asking Ain’t I A Woman and questioning where I fit in popular culture, and even in my own community.
Read more.
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
Monday, March 08, 2010
Monday, March 01, 2010
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
School kids singing Obama song are inspired, not indoctrinated
By Charisse Carney-Nunes
9:00 AM on 10/13/2009
Charisse Carney-Nunes is Senior Vice President of The Jamestown Project and author of the children's book, I Am Barack Obama. She was the invited guest at the Burlington, NJ school where the kids sang for her a song about President Obama. A popular YouTube video showing the schoolchildren singing is currently at the center of the national controversy on alleged "school indoctrination."
Much political hay has been made over the video of the New Jersey school children singing about President Obama and I have since found myself at the center of this firestorm. Conservative commentators and media outlets have labeled this "indoctrination by schools," fueling their listeners recently to conduct a politicized protest in front of an elementary school while in session. Contrary to this position, I believe the song - which was initiated by the school's children, not by me - represents a refreshing example of civic expression, creativity and engagement that is sorely needed in our nation's schools.
Civic education is the teaching of knowledge, skills, values, and character needed to grow into a responsible and active participation in American democracy. It is an effort to instill the values of civility, understanding and respect. Through the civic education of elementary-aged children, I have found that they not only begin to understand their place in the world, but also begin to comprehend their power and potential to make a difference in their own lives, their family, their communities, and their country.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
In Today's Viral World, Who Keeps a Civil Tongue?
By Ann GerhartWashington Post Staff Writer Sunday, October 11, 2009
Late last month, Charisse Carney-Nunes fired up the computer at her home in Northeast Washington to check her e-mail. Her brain already was on morning drive time: breakfast for the kids, her day's work at a government agency. She glanced down at her screen, then froze.
Sunday, October 04, 2009
Charisse appears on Inside Edition
On Friday, October 2, 2009, I appeared on Inside Edition to set the record straight and to discuss the so-called school indoctrination issue.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
C-P Editorial: Burlco school video isn't indoctrination
This is an Op-Ed by the Courier Post Online
Published on 9/29/2009
Those who are trying to make a months-old school project into something sinister need to get over it.
It's clear a faction of Americans are dead-set against ever accepting Barack Obama as president of the United States.
But do these people really need to take a simple song or two -- sung barely a month after Obama's inauguration and sung, logically enough, during Black History Month -- and try to cast the project as some kind of organized attack against the nation?
Really?
Read the entire article here:
http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20090929/OPINION/909290305/-1/newsfront2/C-P-Editorial--Burlco-school-video-isn-t-indoctrination
Published on 9/29/2009
Those who are trying to make a months-old school project into something sinister need to get over it.
It's clear a faction of Americans are dead-set against ever accepting Barack Obama as president of the United States.
But do these people really need to take a simple song or two -- sung barely a month after Obama's inauguration and sung, logically enough, during Black History Month -- and try to cast the project as some kind of organized attack against the nation?
Really?
Read the entire article here:
http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20090929/OPINION/909290305/-1/newsfront2/C-P-Editorial--Burlco-school-video-isn-t-indoctrination
Right-Wing Slinging About Obama Hits Author
By Felicia Pride
Published in The Root, 9/29/2009
Charisse Carney-Nunes writes children's books. Her books, which are published through her company Brand Nu Words, include titles like "Nappy" and "I Dream for You a World: A Covenant for our Children," and are designed to empower kids.
Committed to justice and equality, Nunes, whose books I've covered before, is one of the last people you'd expect to be in the middle of a sloppy smear campaign by right-wingers Michelle Malkin and friends. OK, I take that back. She is exactly the type of person who the Malkins of the world prey on.
Click here to read full article:
http://www.theroot.com/blogs/right-wing/right-wing-slinging-about-obama-hits-author
Published in The Root, 9/29/2009
Charisse Carney-Nunes writes children's books. Her books, which are published through her company Brand Nu Words, include titles like "Nappy" and "I Dream for You a World: A Covenant for our Children," and are designed to empower kids.
Committed to justice and equality, Nunes, whose books I've covered before, is one of the last people you'd expect to be in the middle of a sloppy smear campaign by right-wingers Michelle Malkin and friends. OK, I take that back. She is exactly the type of person who the Malkins of the world prey on.
Click here to read full article:
http://www.theroot.com/blogs/right-wing/right-wing-slinging-about-obama-hits-author
Saturday, September 12, 2009
President Obama Needs to Continue to be a "Ray of Sunshine Symbol of Hope"
Published in The Los Angeles Sentinel, 9/10/2009
http://www.lasentinel.net/President-Obama-Needs-to-Continue-to-be-a-Ray-of-Sunshine-Symbol-of-Hope.html
There is a lot of noise in the media today about whether it is appropriate for President Obama to address our nation's children. Not only is it appropriate, it is necessary.
I have known for many years how inspiring President Obama is. I knew him as a student at Harvard Law School in the early nineties where he was a high achiever and a gifted orator.
When he burst onto the world stage at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, his awesome speech was no surprise to those who'd known him at Harvard. Three years later, I learned of his Presidential bid and, though surprised by the timing, I immediately signed on because I knew that this man would inspire the nation. I felt like the rest of the world would now become privy to a secret that those familiar with him had been aware of for years.
However, what I didn't account for was the extraordinary impact that Barack Obama would have on children. As a children's author, I frequently traveled to schools nationwide promoting my work and talking to kids about child civic engagement. In late 2007, I began to notice that the promise and the example of Barack Obama was infectious among our youngest citizens. And by no means was this sentiment limited to children of color or to children of partisan parents. For children in general were interested in democracy -- interested in what they could do to make their homes, schools and communities a better place.
In the urban districts the fever was undeniable. I heard stories of little African-American boys pulling up their pants, wearing belts and shunning the prevalent, prison-inspired fashion statement known as 'sagging.' In my mother's school, there was a young African-American girl who made the honor role and openly gave the credit to Barack Obama. Before Barack she was uninspired and deemed unreachable, refusing to ignite the potential inside that all of her teachers knew was there.
Meeting these children, educators and parents gave me hope and sustenance. So I set about to collect some of these stories. This process made me understand that, as much as I may support Barack Obama, this moment is really not about Barack Obama; it's about so much more.
It's about the multi-racial child from Wisconsin who told me, "When I saw him in a magazine with the other candidates, I knew right away I picked him. It struck me like thunder. He made a good effort, followed his dreams and won... When I grow up I want to be an astronaut. Now Barack showed me that I can do it."
It's about the little African-American girl from New Jersey who told me, "When I see Barack Obama I see a ray of sunshine. I see a symbol of hope. Seeing Barack Obama makes me feel special and unique in my own way. I realize that a young girl like me can grow up and become President of the United States!"
It's about the mother in DC who told me that, even though she was not a Democrat and disagreed with President Obama's policies, she wanted her children to be inspired by President Obama's example.
As the mother of two young children, I spend a lot of time thinking about the media messages my children are exposed to. I wish that Disney or Nickelodeon would commit to publishing the scripts of Hannah Montana or iCarly in advance. While I allow my 9 year old daughter to watch these shows --which I find generally acceptable-- an occasionally risquĊ½ episode can run dangerously close to disturbing the values I am instilling in my child. I wonder if the parents who are so upset about the President's speech to school children have voiced similar concerns to the networks and advertisers who exert so much control over the messages our children receive on a daily basis.
My first presidential experience was meeting Ronald Reagan as a teen. Though my parents had not voted for him, I was still proud to shake the hand of a U.S. president as he congratulated me for receiving a White House award in Science & Technology. His message was inspiring and simple. Education is the key to success. Stay in school. Work hard. You can achieve the American dream.
The signed letter I received from President Reagan continues to decorate the foyer of my mother's house today. And even though I am at the opposite end of the political spectrum from this late President, his letter still inspires me. And yes, we should allow our children the opportunity to be inspired by our President as well.
Charisse Carney-Nunes is Senior Vice President of The Jamestown Project and author of the children's book, "I Am Barack Obama."
http://www.lasentinel.net/President-Obama-Needs-to-Continue-to-be-a-Ray-of-Sunshine-Symbol-of-Hope.html
There is a lot of noise in the media today about whether it is appropriate for President Obama to address our nation's children. Not only is it appropriate, it is necessary.
I have known for many years how inspiring President Obama is. I knew him as a student at Harvard Law School in the early nineties where he was a high achiever and a gifted orator.
When he burst onto the world stage at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, his awesome speech was no surprise to those who'd known him at Harvard. Three years later, I learned of his Presidential bid and, though surprised by the timing, I immediately signed on because I knew that this man would inspire the nation. I felt like the rest of the world would now become privy to a secret that those familiar with him had been aware of for years.
However, what I didn't account for was the extraordinary impact that Barack Obama would have on children. As a children's author, I frequently traveled to schools nationwide promoting my work and talking to kids about child civic engagement. In late 2007, I began to notice that the promise and the example of Barack Obama was infectious among our youngest citizens. And by no means was this sentiment limited to children of color or to children of partisan parents. For children in general were interested in democracy -- interested in what they could do to make their homes, schools and communities a better place.
In the urban districts the fever was undeniable. I heard stories of little African-American boys pulling up their pants, wearing belts and shunning the prevalent, prison-inspired fashion statement known as 'sagging.' In my mother's school, there was a young African-American girl who made the honor role and openly gave the credit to Barack Obama. Before Barack she was uninspired and deemed unreachable, refusing to ignite the potential inside that all of her teachers knew was there.
Meeting these children, educators and parents gave me hope and sustenance. So I set about to collect some of these stories. This process made me understand that, as much as I may support Barack Obama, this moment is really not about Barack Obama; it's about so much more.
It's about the multi-racial child from Wisconsin who told me, "When I saw him in a magazine with the other candidates, I knew right away I picked him. It struck me like thunder. He made a good effort, followed his dreams and won... When I grow up I want to be an astronaut. Now Barack showed me that I can do it."
It's about the little African-American girl from New Jersey who told me, "When I see Barack Obama I see a ray of sunshine. I see a symbol of hope. Seeing Barack Obama makes me feel special and unique in my own way. I realize that a young girl like me can grow up and become President of the United States!"
It's about the mother in DC who told me that, even though she was not a Democrat and disagreed with President Obama's policies, she wanted her children to be inspired by President Obama's example.
As the mother of two young children, I spend a lot of time thinking about the media messages my children are exposed to. I wish that Disney or Nickelodeon would commit to publishing the scripts of Hannah Montana or iCarly in advance. While I allow my 9 year old daughter to watch these shows --which I find generally acceptable-- an occasionally risquĊ½ episode can run dangerously close to disturbing the values I am instilling in my child. I wonder if the parents who are so upset about the President's speech to school children have voiced similar concerns to the networks and advertisers who exert so much control over the messages our children receive on a daily basis.
My first presidential experience was meeting Ronald Reagan as a teen. Though my parents had not voted for him, I was still proud to shake the hand of a U.S. president as he congratulated me for receiving a White House award in Science & Technology. His message was inspiring and simple. Education is the key to success. Stay in school. Work hard. You can achieve the American dream.
The signed letter I received from President Reagan continues to decorate the foyer of my mother's house today. And even though I am at the opposite end of the political spectrum from this late President, his letter still inspires me. And yes, we should allow our children the opportunity to be inspired by our President as well.
Charisse Carney-Nunes is Senior Vice President of The Jamestown Project and author of the children's book, "I Am Barack Obama."
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Martha's Vineyard Tea
We had tea at Atria on Martha's Vineyard in honor of the First Family! What a great event.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/charissecarneynunes/sets/72157622335111306/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/charissecarneynunes/sets/72157622335111306/
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