WEEKEND QUOTABLES

The auction of a baby, from a slave narrative published in 1849.

Historian Eric Foner 

It is hardly a secret that slavery is deeply embedded in our nation’s history. But many Americans still see it as essentially a footnote, an exception to a dominant narrative of the expansion of liberty on this continent. -- A Brutal Process 

Arne Duncan

... said in an interview that Washington State had broken its commitment and had to pay a price. Some educators and lawmakers in the state say they are perplexed, given that Mr. Duncan acknowledged in August that testing was “sucking the oxygen out of the room in a lot of schools,” and announced that states could delay incorporating test results into teacher evaluations. -- NYT

 Harvard student, Blake McGhghy

 “We’re calling on Harvard to support and provide the resources for people who want want to have lifelong careers in public education, not people who want to teach for a couple of years and then go to law school or business school.”  -- Washington Post

Jeff Bryant

 There’s little doubt now that the grand bargain Bill Clinton and other leaders thought they were making with charter schools proponents was a raw deal. The deal is off. -- Answer Sheet,  Was the ‘original bargain’ with charter schools a raw deal?

Jeremy Scahill

Brian Williams, when he was announcing, you know, the new, latest, greatest threat [Khorasan]—trademark—he had a graphic next to him that just said "the new enemy." -- Democracy Now

Gary Younge (The Nation)

 “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste,” Emanuel said shortly after being named chief of staff in Obama’s first term. “This crisis [the economic meltdown] provides the opportunity for us to do things that you could not do before.” Lewis is, in no small part, responsible for the crisis in Emanuel’s mayoralty. She should not let this opportunity go to waste. -- Run, Karen, Run!