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Teacher shows what it's like to live right next to his students in heartwarming video

"There’s an extra level of care and understanding when you not only love the children you serve but you also live among them."

close_ties/Instagram

Teacher who lives in same neighborhood as students develops special relationship with them.

Certain teachers earn the adoration of their students for going above and beyond their professional role in the classroom. It's something Atlanta teacher Brandon K. Martin has clearly earned.

Martin is the founder and CEO of Close Ties Leadership Program, a nonprofit organization created to "equip Black boys with the skills and experiences necessary to lead in the pathways of their choice by providing early exposure to college and career opportunities, in-school mentorship, and individualized social-emotional support."

He shared a heartwarming video with his followers on social media capturing his experience as a teacher who lives in the same neighborhood as his students. Even outside the classroom, his pupils are eager to see him and spend time with him. "When a teacher walks the same streets, hears the same sirens, sees the same sunsets the lessons run deeper," he captioned the post.

In the video, Martin films his students running towards him as he is parked in his car. He's happy to see them, and more and more student start to assemble, some trying to jump in his car.

"When you live near the kids and they just run to you when you ride past them," he says. "Hello kids. Oh my god, Adisa! Get out! Oh my gosh, ridiculous! I'm about to sell my house so I don't live in the neighborhood anymore, because I'm driving home and look what happens."

The camera pans to the trunk of Martin's truck, and a gaggle of students have piled in to catch a ride and just be close to him. "When I decided to become a teacher, there was no doubt that I wanted to return to my hometown of Southeast Atlanta to do so. Eleven years later, I still share the same neighborhood with the kids I serve which makes moments like this a normal part of my routine," he added in the caption.

He went on to explain the power of living close to his students. "There’s an extra level of care and understanding when you not only love the children you serve but you also live among them," he wrote.

Martin adds that his role as an educator and mentor is one he holds with great weight and zero resentment. "From checking the mail to grocery shopping to grabbing dinner… I will always hear 'Hey Mr. Martin!' I couldn’t get away from them even if I wanted to!"

And the joyful video earned Martin heaps of praise from viewers. "Thank you for calling them CHILDREN! They are giggling, laughing, smiling, and playing like children. Thank you for not adultifying them. They deserve a childhood," one wrote. Another added, "That's trust. That's comfort. That's security." And another viewer shared, "I love this for ALL of you. These are the same children that will never forget you and take care of you if anything were to ever happen. THANK YOU for loving on those babies!" And another touched viewer summed it up perfectly: "Look at these kids!! These young boys KNOW they have a great teacher that loves and cares about them!! Kids like them need a village behind them and you sir are obviously leading the village ❤️ I can’t even imagine them impact you have these children’s hearts and minds."

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Joy

Young baseball fan goes viral after sweetly giving up home run ball to fan of rival team

@AH_Pod/Twitter

This article originally appeared on 04.12.21


In all sports, competition can get fierce, especially at the professional level. But two young baseball fans showed us this weekend that sports are really all about fun and connection first with a beautiful show of sportsmanship, kindness, and gratitude.

It happened at a game between division rivals, the Philadephia Phillies and the Atlanta Braves, at Truist Park in Atlanta Saturday night. Joshua, a young Phillies fan, happened to be sitting near the spot where Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman landed a home run in the top of the ninth. Joshua didn't quite manage to catch the ball in his glove, and it fell down into the bullpen. When someone grabbed it and tossed it up to him, he missed that catch, too—twice. Cameras caught him and his dad in a funny exchange, as Joshua got some light, good-natured ribbing from his old man.

But that wasn't the moment that really caught people's attention. Instead of keeping the home run ball for himself, Joshua took it over to a young Braves fan who was wearing a Freeman jersey and gave it to him. After excitedly showing the prized ball to his dad, the boy went over to thank Joshua and his dad.

Watch:

The whole exchange was just so wholesome, encapsulating how sports can—and should—bring people together. Even though they were rooting for opposite teams, the mutual respect and sportsmanship shown by these two boys is a lesson for all of us.

People loved seeing all of this play out on film, including the Phillies and Braves themselves. In fact, Freddie Freeman surprised Johsua before the following night's game by personally giving him a baseball signed by him and Phillies right fielder Bryce Harper.

Both teams shared their admiration for Joshua's generosity on social media.

Many commenters remarked that Joshua's father is clearly raising his son right, as is the dad of the kid who came over to say think you. Joshua's dad, James Scott, said that the action of his son was in "the DNA" of the family—to "pay it forward in love," as he wrote on Twitter. He referred to the exchange as "a great moment of humanity."

When we are immersed daily in stories of division, and as humanity works through the very real issues of all kinds that we have to fix to get past those divisions, it's wonderful to be reminded of the beautiful ways people can touch one another's lives in ways big and small. In this case, a mutual love of baseball, despite the on-field rivalry of the two teams, and the basic act of a kid brightening a stranger's day reassure us that the ills of society are not all that we are.

It's so easy to focus on the negative news, and it's so easy to get bogged down by the vast amount of work to be done to help us get to a place of true unity, equality, and justice. Seeing these small moments, these seemingly minor gestures, these glimpses of human connection help sustain us through that work.

It may have been a simple act, but the impact of it is profound. Thanks to these gentlemen for filling our hearts for a moment and reminding us what the best of us look like.

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Wellness

Attacks on Asian-Americans need to stop. Here's what we can all do to help.

TRT World/Twitter

Attacks on Asian-Americans and Pacific-Islanders (AAPI) have been highlighted by advocacy groups since early in the pandemic, but it took nearly a year for the incidents to start receiving the broad media coverage they deserve. Despite stunning statistics in the rise in anti-Asian sentiment, discrimination, and violence, it's taken vicious attacks on Asian-American elders and a horrific shooting spree of Asian-American women to get the nation's full attention.

A killing spree at three spas in the Atlanta area left eight people dead, including six women of Asian descent, last night. Details are still emerging, but we know that the shooter was a white man who loved guns and who purposely and premeditatedly targeted these businesses, driving dozens of miles between shootings at three different spas. We know that Asian-Americans make up around 3% of the population of Georgia and 75% of the victims of this shooting. We know that the killer blamed a sex addiction and targeted massage parlors (which are largely staffed by Asian women) because they represented "a temptation."

And we know that these shootings add another frightening layer to skyrocketing attacks on people of Asian descent in the U.S.

In February, the death of an 84-year-old Thai man who was violently tackled in his driveway shone a spotlight on the issue in the Bay Area, where a spate of attacks has erupted in recent months. A video of a 91-year-old man being violently shoved to the ground in Oakland prompted actors Daniel Dae Kim and Daniel Wu to offer a reward of $25,000 to anyone who could help identify the attacker. (It turned out police already had him in custody as a suspect for other similar attacks.) A 64-year-old Vietnamese grandmother was assaulted and robbed of $1000 while walking to her car in San Jose as well, and Chinatown businesses have been hit by an alarming increase in robberies.

Amanda Nguyễn, CEO and founder of the civil rights organization Rise, shared a plea on Instagram for people to raise awareness about the increase in anti-AAPI violence last month.

Other kinds of attacks have also made headlines in recent weeks. Mike Nguyen, who owns an Asian restaurant in San Antonio, went on CNN last week to speak out against Texas governor Greg Abbott lifting the state's mask mandate. Four days later, the front of his restaurant was graffitied with the phrases like "No Mask," "Kung Flu," "Commie," "Hope U Die" and "Ramen Noodle Flu." Nguyen, whose background is Vietnamese and French, was also greeted with the words "Go Back 2 China" spray-painted on a bench outside the restaurant.

According to NYPD data reported in the Queens Chronicle in September, anti-Asian hate crimes had already increased 1900% from 2019 to 2020 before fall even hit. (In the same time period, anti-Jewish and anti-Black hate crimes in New York had decreased, so it's not a matter of overall hate crimes increasing.) The Anti-Defamation League reported in June that there had been a "significant" number of reports of harassment and attacks against people in the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community, and the United Nations stated in October that hate crimes against Asian-Americans were happening at "alarming levels," citing 1800 incidents in just two months, from March to May of 2020.

Reading people's individual stories, it's clear that the vast majority of incidents include references to the COVID-19 pandemic. People blame Asian-Americans for the coronavirus—a xenophobic idea that has been inflamed by politicians who insist on calling it the "China virus" or "Kung flu." (That's not merely conjecture; Manjusha Kulkarni, executive director of the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council said that their data showed that the increase in racist and xenophobic attacks was "catalyzed by rhetoric from the president and other government leadership.")

The AAPI community needs every American of goodwill to step up, speak up, and act to put an end to these attacks. Here are some things everyone can do to help:

- Personally: If you see or hear someone using anti-AAPI language, say something. Don't let phrases like "China virus" or "Kung Flu" or comments blaming Asian people for the pandemic go unchallenged. Commit to not being a passive bystander, but rather an active disrupter, of harassment when you see it. If you witness an incident, report it at stopaapihate.org.

- Socially: Get to know AAPI members of your community and listen to their concerns. Raise awareness by following and sharing the hashtag #StopAAPIHate on social media. Speak out about Anti-Asian hate crimes and share positive stories about people from the AAPI community as well.

- Educationally: Seek out information about the kinds of discrimination people in the AAPI community face. Click on the links from this article or simply Google terms like "Anti-Asian" and "AAPI hate crimes." If you're a parent, teach your kids how to recognize when their peers are engaging in anti-Asian jokes or behavior and how to be an ally.

- Organizationally: Make sure your workplace and organizations you're a part of are committed to protecting AAPI members of your community from harassment. This PDF from the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance put together has specific action items employers and organizations can use as a guide.

- Monetarily: Buy from AAPI-owned businesses, many of which have suffered during the pandemic both from economic loss and discriminatory attacks. Support AAPI advocacy and anti-discrimination organizations such as iHollaback! (an anti-harassment organization that provides free bystander intervention training) or the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (a coalition of more than 100 organizations advocating for AAPI communities). Keep an eye out for crowdfunding efforts for individual victims of hate crimes.

- Democratically: Reach out to your local, state, and national government representatives to voice your support for the AAPI community and ask them to denounce xenophobic rhetoric in politics. Learn about the president's plan for the AAPI community and push him to take action on those commitments. Elevate the voices of elected officials from the AAPI community and those who speak up against anti-AAPI discrimination.

You can also check out more anti-Asian violence resources here.

Let's all commit to creating a society in which everyone is uplifted and where all people can feel safe no matter who we are or where we come from.

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Popular

A black couple turned away a contractor who arrived with a giant Confederate flag on his car

The legacy of American Civil War is one with a lot of emotional weight for most Americans, one flashpoint has always been what is the Confederate flag. For some a symbol of historical pride, but for others it is a reminder of centuries of oppression and bigotry. And when Allison Brown saw the contractor she'd recently hired pull up to her house in an Atlanta suburb with a giant Confederate flag hanging from his SUV, she took a stand.


Confederate flag capture on ring cam

"Hi, you know what I do apologize. I know you've come from a very long way but we're going to use someone else," Allison said politely when she spotted the Confederate battle flag. Her husband Zeke said that she was upset with the flag, to which Allison replied, "No, I'm beyond upset with the flag."



The contractor offered to take the flag down but the damage was done. "No, you don't need to take it down. You can continue to believe what you need to believe, sir. But no, I cannot pay you for your services. Thank you, have a good day." And with that the man got into his car and left.



The story went viral and people did not shy away from praising Brown for her steadfastness in an emotionally charged situation, and for treating the man like she would like to be treated.

The battle flag, or the flag we know today as the CSA (Confederate States of America) flag, did not start life as the official banner of the Confederacy. It was first the battle flag of the Army of Northern Virginia and was only adopted in the upper third of the official flag in 1863. The version we know today did not come to be known as the CSA flag until the early twentieth century when it was revived by the KKK and the Dixiecrat party.



Despite the historical murkiness of the flag's true history people remain divided about its meaning. In 2015 a pew poll found that, "Fifty-seven percent of the country saw the flag as a symbol of Southern pride, including 66% of all whites and 75% of Southern whites. But 72% of blacks saw a symbol of racism."

With that in mind maybe the contractor should have had some idea that showing up to a black family's home with the giant Confederate battle flag was a maybe a bad idea, but it appears that "pride" took center stage.

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