It seems that these days, we’re inundated with horrific stories of children suffering abuse, going missing, or suffering at the hands of an adult that they placed their trust in. But, it’s less common to hear about a teacher’s opinions about those stories. Well, one teacher decided to weigh in on a recent abduction – and while we’d like to think that most teachers would share words of wisdom in a troubling situation, it seems that this teacher needed some education herself.
Five-year-old Dulce Maria Alavez went missing from a playground in Bridgeton, N.J., in broad daylight on September 16. It was sometime around 4pm, when Dulce and her three-year-old brother were playing together at Bridgeton City Park, after getting ice cream with their mother, Noema Alavez Perez, and a younger family member. They had only been at the park for ten minutes, when the little boy ran back to his mother, crying. It was then that Noema realized something was wrong, and went to look for her daughter. “We thought that she was just hiding, playing around and we went looking for her but we couldn’t find her,” she said in a recent interview with CBS Philadelphia
As soon as the girl’s disappearance went public, the online trolls came out.
While Noema had notified police of the situation shortly before 5pm, she has faced intense scrutiny in the aftermath of her daughter’s disappearance. Revelations that she was 14 when Dulce was born, that the girl’s father lives in Mexico, that she once smoked marijuana and that she ate a slice of pizza after accepting her daughter’s disappearance all invoked the wrath of both online and offline critics. Because heaven forbid a mother take a break and grab a bite to eat while the police search for her daughter.
If you think matters couldn’t get any worse – this is where the teacher comes in.
It was in the midst of this whirlwind of criticism against Noema that one teacher decided to join the fray on Facebook. Jennifer Hewitt Bishop, an elementary school teacher in South Jersey, responded to a post that questioned why Noema sat so far away when her children were playing in the park with, “They’re Mexican, it’s their culture. They don’t supervise their children like we do.”
The school board of where the teacher works, has taken her off of her post.
Once officials from Vineland Public Schools became aware of Bishop’s post, they launched an investigation into the matter, and Bishop was promptly taken out of the classroom. It’s not clear whether her absence is simply forced leave, or a suspension. However, it seemed that the school board overseeing Bishop’s position would decide on the matter this coming Wednesday. The president of the Vineland Education Association, Lou Russo, seemed reluctant to publicly condemn Bishop’s remarks, saying that comments online are “often misunderstood and taken out of context by a virtual crowd that rarely takes time to think and reflect or seek clarification before they react with verbal attacks of their own.”
Rest assured, the Twitter community also took the teacher to task.
Some were quick to identify that ignorance isn’t really an excuse when it comes to racist remarks – and that Bishop should be fired. And, in fairness, racism is something that is not innate, but learned. It unequivocally doesn’t have a place in the classroom – ergo, there’s no need for racist educators, please and thank you.
Many pointed out that they shared similar parenting styles – allowing children to develop.
Others were inspired to defend Noema’s parenting, in light of Bishop’s unfair commentary. In the same way that we shouldn’t blame victims of sexual assault for being assaulted, it’s not a mother’s fault if her child is kidnapped. At the end of the day, the fault still lies with the person who commits the crime – not someone who was unable to prevent the crime.
While others pointed out the teacher’s bigotry and noted it needed to be punished.
This user smartly pointed out that people who are in positions of authority should not be perpetuating discrimination – and that it’s important to challenge bigotry when it does appear from people who wield power.
The thing is, the real focus should be placed on finding Dulce Maria Alavez – not ridiculous online commentary from a member of the community who should know better. The only positive that can be taken from this situation is that, hopefully, the teacher’s comments and ensuing media coverage can continue to keep Alavez’s profile in the spotlight while she’s missing. On that note, reports say that a light-skinned man with facial acne was seen leading Dulce away from the playground on that fateful afternoon, to a red van with tinted windows. Anyone who has information about the incident is to get in touch with either the Bridgeton police on 856-451-0033, or the State Police Missing Persons Unit at 609-882-2000, ext. 2554.
When visiting the National Hispanic Cultural Center campus in Albuquerque, New Mexico, it’s easy to write-off the upside-down, bucket shape form rising from the ground. It stands alone with no distinguishing marks. There are no large crowds to hint at the remarkable secret hidden inside. Visitors will know they are in the right place when the gray asphalt and concrete beneath their feet morph into red—matching the building’s exterior.
Two, towering wood doors mark the entry into the nondescript building.
Credit: Courtesy of Ximena N. Larkin
When the doors swing open, it’s impossible to avoid looking up because the vibrant colors of the ceiling act as a magnet, drawing eyes upwards. Step into the 45-foot dome-shaped structure to get a better look, and there, in the small Southwest town of less than 1 million, the largest fresco painting in North America wraps around the ceiling.
El Torreón is the name of the structure which houses Mundos de Mestizaje.
Credit: Courtesy of Ximena N. Larkin
The larger-than-the-Sistine-Chapel fresco made by Frederico Vigil. It took the Santa Fe native almost three years to have it approved and 10 years to complete it. The aerial artwork depicts thousands of years of Hispanic and pre-Hispanic history. Depending on your cultural background, some iconography is easy to spot and place in history. If you’re Mexican, La Virgen de Guadalupe, a portrait of the beloved civil rights leader Benito Juárez and the eagle, serpent, and nopal from Mexico’s coat of arms will stand out. But walk around the room, or sit in one of the lounging chairs that allow visitors to tip back and view the work at 180 degrees, and soon you’ll realize there are hidden figures among the more popular markers of Mexican and Indigenous identity.
“I’m a mixed man with many different bloodlines,” Vigil says on a phone call. “I’m mestizo. I wanted to show the history of what that means.”
For the project, Vigil consulted with seven scholars on Mesoamerican and Spanish historical culture in order to create an accurate depiction of the past.
Credit: Courtesy of Ximena N. Larkin
He says that just by looking at the Iberian Peninsula, there’s a mix of Romans, Celts, Muslims, and Phoenicians which is all tied into Spanish identity. Then, with the Americas, there’s Maya, Aztec and Toltec. The history of these lines iS not linear. They overlap, intertwine and blend together in a dizzying ride that Vigil worked to bring to life in Mundos de Mestizaje.
The purpose is to show the viewer how interconnected and far-reaching culture is. Islamic philosopher Ibn Rushd is depicted sitting next to Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, a Medieval Torah scholar, and physician. Chacmool, the pre-Columbian sculpture found throughout Mesoamerica shares space with George Washington and an African slave.
“There are no purebloods, we are all mixed—or perhaps the only people who can say they are of pure blood are the Amazons or indigenous tribes that have lived in isolation,” Vigil says. “When people begin to study the past, they realize we, as a society, are not genetically one thing.”
Vigil learned the art of fresco painting from Lucienne Bloch and Stephen Pope Dimitroff. The couple might not be household names outside of the art community, but their bosses were. Bloch and Dimitroff were assistants to the world-renowned Mexican artists Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo.
Vigil connected with the couple thanks to the Santa Fe Council for The Arts.
Credit: Courtesy of Ximena N. Larkin
The organization reached out to Vigil to gauge his interest in a scholarship learning from the pair. Now in their 70s, the two aging artists were making strides to ensure their knowledge was passed down to a new generation of creators. Art lessons were accompanied by tales of the past that included Kahlo, Rivera, and friends such as Leon Trotsky. There, he learned the complicated and time-consuming process of fresco painting.
A surface is rough plastered with a mix of lime, sand, and cement. On average, a layer takes 10-12 hours to dry. A painter can go to work an hour into the drying process and usually has between seven to nine hours of time to complete their design. The art then needs 7-10 days between coats. If the painter messes up, they have to scrape off the layers and begin again.
“I’m a procrastinator but when the wall is wet, you have to paint,” says Vigil. “Each painting is a new experience. It doesn’t get old.”
Vigil is currently working on a new 2,500-plus square foot monumental fresco at the Albuquerque Convention Center.
Credit: Courtesy of Ximena N. Larkin
His new work tells the tale of New Mexico’s history as the oldest state in the U.S. to produce wine. He says the piece could take four to six years to complete. He’s currently in his second year.
The hours for the Torreón (where the fresco is housed) are Saturdays and Sundays from 12-5 p.m., plus it is open by appointment, which can be scheduled with Juanita Ramírez at Juanita.ramirez@state.nm.us or 505-383-4774. The NHCC presents concerts in the Torreón in partnership with the Pimentel & Sons Guitar Makers. The Torreón is available for rentals under certain circumstances and with some restrictions.
