Over the years, one of the things to watch at the State of the Union speech has been the guests who sit in the First Lady's box. They are carefully chosen to emphasize the message a president wants to send with his speech. Given the current situation in Ukraine, one of the more powerful moments came when Biden introduced the Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States, Oksana Markarova.
The Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S., Oksana Markarova, gets standing ovation at the State of the Union
— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 2, 2022
"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Biden says https://t.co/53ZYabGLjD pic.twitter.com/5FrbhyIZse
As you watch that moment, you might have wondered who was standing behind Markarova wearing the brightly colored ribbon skirt. It was Melissa Isaac from Mt. Pleasant, Michigan.
Isaac is an enrolled member of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe and serves her community through her role at the Michigan Department of Education. Most recently, Isaac worked as the Director of Education for the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe. As an elementary school teacher at Saginaw Chippewa Academy (SCA), Isaac recognized the need to support the mental health of her students and their families. She later successfully applied for a Project AWARE grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Using this grant, Isaac expanded mental health services for children at SCA and two public school districts, which included services for Native American children.
Jill Biden met Isaac in October 2021 when the First Lady, joined by Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, conducted a listening session on youth mental health with members of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan.
Publications like Indian Country Today, Native News Online, and IllumiNative all celebrated the recognition of Isaac by the First Lady in such a public way.Miigwetch to #flotus @DrBiden for coming to our Tribal Community to celebrate Project AWARE and talking with me about the importance of youth mental health. 💜💚 pic.twitter.com/QVV5gIHvZy
— Melissa Isaac (@ndneyez) October 25, 2021
2/2 number of BIPOC people killed by police brutality. It will not keep my Indigenous sisters from going Missing and being Murdered, and it definitely won't kill the Indian to save the man.....We are still here.
— Melissa Isaac (@ndneyez) June 12, 2021
Of course, when Isaac suggested that critical race theory is just a smokescreen, she was right. Even Christopher Rufo, who initiated the whole controversy, said that it was being used as a "brand category" to make all the left's views about racism "toxic." Perhaps it was Isaac's powerful claim that, regardless of attempts at censorship, "we are still here," that really spooked the right wingers.
Another piece of "evidence" Fox News used to suggest that Isaac supported critical race theory had absolutely nothing to do with critical race theory, confirming her claim that it is just a smokescreen. In these tweets, she was giving advice about how to be a good ally.
3. Seek out "race experts" who are NOT of that race!!
— Melissa Isaac (@ndneyez) September 5, 2020
It is 1 example of systemic racism to seek out and hire "race experts" when we are fully capable of representing and speaking for ourselves! Its also pathetic and inexcusable to portray and steal our identities! 👎🏽
It is obvious that critical race theory has been weaponized as the tool right wingers will use to attack any person of color who rises to national prominence (especially women). So we can expect Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson to be grilled about it during her confirmation hearings.
But here's the other side of the coin. As I read the Fox News piece on Isaac, I gained more admiration for her personally and went looking for more information. I might not have noticed what happened Tuesday night if they hadn't brought it to my attention. At least with me, their attack backfired and I am SO proud of our First Lady for introducing us to Melissa Isaac.
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