They first came for the Communists, your child may be next

One of my greatest frustrations comes from being told by members of the parent community / friends that they have long known from their children about acts being committed that were damaging to another child or the school community as a whole but  had not wanted to report them or have their child report them as the acts did not directly affect them.    

There are several versions of the well-known statement attributed to the German anti-Nazi activist, Pastor Martin Niemöller but the following was recorded by someone who heard him speak at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur:

In Germany they first came for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist. Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.

Then they came for me —
and by that time no one was left to speak up.

As adults we need to teach our children that "speaking-up" is a Christian obligation even if it potentially comes at a cost to us.  

We are all familiar with the Commandment “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” but Saint Ambrose went further and told us that we have a greater duty to act in defence of our neighbors than in defence of ourselves. 

Please teach your children to have the courage to speak up for those who need it