This is a cross-post.

I know, MLK day isn't topical four days later, but I couldn't decide how to blog this. My kids go to a Jewish non-profit preschool in the city. This is Danny's first year, and he goes two days a week. Jacob is on his third year, and he goes five days. On Wednesdays, the kids have music class, and I happen to be a big fan of the teacher, local and celebrated children's musician Susan Salidor.

Apparently, Susan has a song about Martin Luther King, and each year does a program on him. So, as Jacob's teacher Hattie explained to me, they talked about Dr. King and his message, as well as the fact that he was shot by "a bad man," which "made G-d very sad." After this program, Jacob went back to his classroom and drew a giant picture of a black man wearing a crown and festooned with tons of red and black gashes. Next to Dr. King (get it? crown?), was an expressionless man shooting a gun. The red and black gashes, Jacob said, were the bulletholes and stitches. Hattie was monstrously impressed with Jacob's artwork and hung it proudly in the classroom.

Filled with an awkward sort of kid-pride, I called DH. "Really? They told the kids how Dr. King was killed?" he responded, in shock. Relieved, I commiserated with him. Yes, by all means, tell children how this incredible man helped a nation begin to change things that were terribly wrong. But to tell 2-5 year olds that another man killed him?

I couldn't decide if I was being too sensitive about the subject, so I decided to wait and see if Jacob raised it at all. It didn't take long. On Monday, Hattie called to tell me that Jacob was being corrected by another teacher, and he responded, "Well, I'm going to kill you."

Probably I should explain that, while Jacob displays some fairly typical oppositional behavior (as the shrinks call it), he's generally a really good kid. He's very bright, imaginative and expressive. He also knows the basics of right and wrong (as well as any kid his age could, I suppose). We limit his TV and movies to non-violent, age-appropriate subjects and programs. So, for my almost-five-year-old to threaten to kill a teacher (because she dared tell him to stay on his cot and be quiet during naptime).... well, that tells me something funky is going on.

Am I making too much of this? Don't know... all I know is, I will be careful to ask Jacob's kindergarten teacher (and Danny's preschool teacher) about the way they approach Dr. King next year.