a city reader

That’s a noble cause a woman said passing the sign this morning. Sometimes I get people who say that’s a lost cause. Sometimes they say it’s the parents' fault. Sometimes they say the city doesn’t want to spend the money. Sometimes they say it’s because they don’t want to learn, Sometimes it’s the teachers' union that's the reason.  Frequently someone says they don’t want them to learn to read because then they’d see the truth.

Most people make such comments when they’re walking by. When they do stop, I’ll say various things in the minute I might have them there. What I most often say is that I think it’s sinful to have the kids in the city’s schools–by law—for at least 10 years and to pass some kids along without teaching them to read well. If I think to, I point to the sign and say if they did this it would change everything, They’d even know better then who to hire. You want people, I say, who read and like to read to be around kids in school. You don’t want careerists, you want readers.