Montessori is a powerful tool for peace…
…but only if we use it that way.
As Montessori practitioners, we are working toward peace through the Montessori educational framework that is Anti-Oppression and Pro-Liberation.
Dr. Montessori was deeply outspoken about her methods as being liberatory for the child. She saw a new world possibility through the liberating of the child from the oppressive systems that constrained their ability to develop as they were trying to do. She did not say “peace education”; she said “education for peace.” Montessori found that peace is not something that needs to be taught. She found that peace is an outcome from a liberatory/anti-oppression model of education. And that is what she created.
But we are not going to get to our ideals of peace, even with Montessori education, if we can’t see the same problem. School shootings are devastating. Threatening the lives and well-being of trans-youth is criminal. Eliminating bodily autonomy to make reproductive heath choices is unjust. Murdering another unarmed Black man is inhumane. Systematically removing Native kids from their homes is genocide. The root of all of these issues is the same: the colonial construct positioning white people and white culture as superior to all other peoples and cultures by oppressing all other peoples and cultures. This superiority is superficial, but it has been embedded into the structures and systems we use today.
For example, child welfare (we’re concerned about kids, right?) A child, whose family is not able to care for their basic needs due to poverty, is removed by a system and placed into foster care/ possibly placed for adoption. Adoptive families often change the child’s name and may or may not choose to reveal the child’s cultural identity or birth parents to the child; essentially erasing the child’s past. Now, that new adoptive family is given money from the same system that removed the child in the first place.
As a TikTok influencer @onlyblvckgirl, who herself is a transracial adoptee, pointed out, What would have happened if that money went to the family so that they could actually afford to cover the basic needs for that child? Why is money going to an (often white) adoptive family if the focus really is on the well-being of the child?
So, let’s talk a bit more about protecting kids:
For a long time, Native children we kidnapped from their homes, taken from their families, and brought to “Residential Schools” or placed in white adoptive homes. The intent of these practices, particularly the schools, was to strip the children of their culture, language, family ties, and anything related to their People. There are many horrors detailed from survivors of the abuse and inhumane treatment at these facilities, but there were also a significant number of children died in these facilities. In the US, over 500 children died (and probably much more). In Canada, an estimated over 4,100 children died with mass graves found in recent years at these sites.
In response to much of this, ICWA - the Indian Child Welfare Act - was passed in 1978 in the United States:
“The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is a 43-year-old federal law that protects the well-being and best interests of Indian children and families. ICWA does this by upholding family integrity and stability and by keeping Indian children connected to their community and culture. ICWA also reaffirms the inherent rights of tribal nations to be involved in child welfare matters involving their citizens.
For decades, ICWA has been recognized by child welfare experts as the gold standard in child welfare practice, and the law has helped tens of thousands of Indian children and families find fairness and healing in state child welfare systems.” - Native American Rights Fund
In 2023, ICWA is at risk of being overturned. With a case having been heard by the Supreme Court in November 2022, the date for the anticipated decision is set for June 2023.
ICWA ensures that [adoption] is given careful consideration so that the unique needs of Native children are met. ICWA places kids with their extended families or communities when possible, which is considered best practice by child welfare experts. Research shows that when kids are connected to their identity and culture it leads to positive outcomes, including higher self-esteem and academic achievement. - Native American Rights Fund
You can stand up for Native kids:
Stay updated on the ICWA decision
Follow Protect ICWA Instagram
Follow Protect ICWA Twitter
Download a One-Page Informational Protect ICWA
Sign the Protect ICWA Petition [they are 235 signatures away from their goal]
Learn more at Protect ICWA Linktree with additional articles and information
About The PEACE Program
Our Montessori Masterclass lives into our values of self-reflection, self-care, responsiveness to being/becoming Anti-Bias / Anti-Racist, and a deep commitment to the whole child within the whole family. We offer a holistic program meant to provide inclusive, practical, and supportive guidance for parents & educators from birth to six.
