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Teachers grapple with Columbus Day, Bucks County fights homelessness | Morning Newsletter

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Kate Hanssen, standing, works with students on a lesson about the diversity of Native American groups sixth-grade history class at Germantown Friends School. Around Columbus Day, students learn about "Indigenous People's Day" and examine the complicated legacy of Columbus.
Kate Hanssen, standing, works with students on a lesson about the diversity of Native American groups sixth-grade history class at Germantown Friends School. Around Columbus Day, students learn about "Indigenous People's Day" and examine the complicated legacy of Columbus.Read moreTIM TAI / Staff Photographer
    by Aubrey Nagle
    Published 

    The Morning Newsletter

    Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter

If Philly feels a bit subdued this morning, it's probably due to the lingering disappointment (and maybe embarrassment?) over yesterday's Eagles loss. Or it could be that it's Columbus Day and some schools and businesses are keeping their doors closed. In schools that are open, some teachers will be struggling with how to teach the legacy of Christopher Columbus. My colleague Kristen Graham talked with local educators to find out how they're preparing to teach students about the controversial figure today.

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— Aubrey Nagle (@aubsn, morningnewsletter@philly.com)

» READ MORE: Is Christopher Columbus a hero?

It's no longer a holiday for the Philadelphia School District, but many students in the region have off today for Columbus Day.

For some, the day is an occasion to commemorate Italian-American heritage and the 15th-century navigator who happened upon the Americas.

But for many teachers, a day named for a polarizing figure who brutally treated native people and spread colonialism means grappling with how to teach a complicated legacy.

» READ MORE: In Pennsylvania’s Republican counties, John Fetterman is stirring Democratic interest

Just this weekend, the candidates for Pennsylvania lieutenant governor — Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Jeff Bartos — faced off in a cordial but lively debate.

But it's Fetterman, the tattooed mayor of Braddock, who has been wooing the state's Republican counties of late.

The unconventional candidate has become a bit of a left-wing icon in the last few years. Now, the enthusiasm is showing in the form of crowded events as he tours the state.

» READ MORE: As Bucks County fights homelessness, some entrenched camps hide in plain sight

They're not easy to see, but they're there. Clandestine homeless camps are spread throughout lower Bucks County.

The county's most vulnerable have been pushed deeper into the woods as more visible enclaves are broken up. The county has only one emergency shelter with just 82 beds and it routinely operates at or beyond capacity.

Officially, street-level homelessness is down, but shelter workers say the problem isn't getting any better.

What you need to know today

  1. The Eagles' 23-21 loss to the Vikings, at home no less, was a tough one to watch. The penalties and turnovers weren't becoming of a championship team, and the Birds know they have no one to blame but themselves for their 2-3 losing record.

  2. The nonprofit set to open Philadelphia's first safe injection site has been backed by former mayor and governor Ed Rendell. A welcome surprise for the founders, getting him on board was a cinch. 

  3. In a win for block party throwers everywhere, Philadelphia has removed the pesky extra step in the permit application process they added this summer, after outrage ensued. Sometimes you gotta fight for your right to party.

  4. A Ford Focus ended up underwater in a Delaware County marina over the weekend. The driver who put it there escaped before the car sank only to run off, telling witnesses it was his dad's car. Yikes.

  5. Saturday marked the 100th anniversary of the closing of Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania. Descendants of the native people forced into the assimilation school gathered to acknowledge their continued trauma and resilience over the weekend.

  6. A spate of sexual misconduct lawsuits is roiling Stockton University. The common thread in each: a rogue off-campus fraternity whose national recognition was revoked eight years ago.

Through Your Eyes | #OurPhilly

What a moody color palette, @ronkoch2. That millennial pink is very 2018.

Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we'll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out!

That’s Interesting

  1. Soon the Prince Theater will be no more, in name at least. The Philadelphia Film Society is rebranding it as the Philadelphia Film Center.

  2. The monumental Afro pick displayed last year near the statue of Frank Rizzo in Center City has been acquired by the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Now, they just need to decide where to display it.

  3. Sixers owner Josh Harris is not messing around this season. He said he wants to "keep up with the Eagles and 'Nova" — a.k.a. bring home a championship.

  4. Speaking of Villanova, the reigning national champion men's basketball team has a newly refurbished home to play in. The Finneran Pavilion got a $65 million makeover.

  5. …And speaking of champions, could the Union be the next Philly team to bring home a trophy? They clinched a playoff spot Saturday night.

  6. Boyz II Men's own Nathan Morris is busy promoting his new house flipping TV show, but he still has time to talk about Gritty, as every Philadelphian must.

Opinions

"The worst potential consequence is the normalization of serious drug use in the name of harm reduction. Safe injection sites are essentially state-sponsored shooting-up galleries."
— —

  1. Despite the controversy, Democrats may find a silver lining to Judge Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court confirmation in conservative Chief Justice John Roberts Jr., write professors Lawrence Baum and Neal Devins.

  2. Kavanaugh's confirmation shows American democracy is broken, writes columnist Will Bunch. The way to fix it, he writes, includes abolishing the electoral college and banning gerrymandering.

What we’re reading

  1. City Lab's attempt at explaining how the Flyers' new mascot, Gritty, so quickly became an unlikely symbol of resistance is as engaging as his nightmarish googly eyes.

  2. The Revolution School, a private high school looking to open in Philly next year, makes a lot of radical promises to potential students in Philadelphia Magazine's new profile. It's all speculation for now, but it makes for a good read nonetheless.

  3. PlanPhilly took a recorder out to a street festival in Point Breeze to talk with residents about their changing neighborhood, and their soundbites are definitely worth a listen.

  4. Photos of migrants shown how they want to be seen from a new exhibit previewed by NPR will stop you in your tracks. They feature the work of Philly-based designer Ikiré Jones, too.

  5. From the stranger side of the art world comes HuffPost's look into the true identities of a few famous Instagram poets. The story has far more twists and turns than I anticipated.

Your Daily Dose of | Mystery

Anthropologists at the Penn Museum are currently investigating a 2,000-year-old child mummy from Egypt. It's probably not cursed. Probably.