My guest today is Elisabeth Heurtefeu, an educator who has been a teacher, administrator and school principal. In fact, the school where she was principal for eight years, LaSalle Language Academy Magnet School, won the 2015 National Blue Ribbon.
Winning the 2015 Blue Ribbon on behalf of LaSalle Language Academy Magnet School
(Image by Elisabeth Heurtefeu) Details DMCA
Joan Brunwasser: Welcome to OpEdNews, Elisabeth. You came to my attention when I saw your election-related YouTube, Are the Clintons Being Played?. Please help get the ball rolling. How did you come to make this video?
Elisabeth Heurtefeu: I have been following the US presidential elections very closely and as a voter, I researched diligently the candidates. I made the determination that Bernie Sanders was in my view the only candidate who not only had showed political honesty over time but also was advocating about current issues that need to be addressed to move the country forward.
I also researched the FBI probe. As I was waiting for Senator Warren to endorse Bernie Sanders, it became very intriguing to me that the president, VP Biden and Warren endorsed Hillary Clinton on the same day.
With all I had read also about President Obama and Vice-President Biden, it did not make sense to me that they would endorse Hillary Clinton. It conflicted with my perception of their character. As a result, I started writing a scenario that would be based on facts and would be rational.
Once the scenario was written, all I had to do was to make it entertaining and illustrate with pictures and videos.
JB: What a concept! Had you ever done anything similar before? Why not just write an op-ed piece? This sounds so much more elaborate, time-consuming and complicated.
EH: I retired from my CPS principal job in July 2015 so I have now time to devote to a few passions. I always liked to write. I published a book of poems a long time ago in Paris, France (Conjuguer l'Enfance). When I sailed across the Atlantic, I brought with me a Super 8 camera and learned how to make movies. I also taught myself how to compose "midi" music in the 1990s before moving to Chicago in 1996. All these time-consuming passions were put "on the back burner" when I was working as teacher and principal in Chicago.
Over the last few months, I have composed music mostly for videos that document the Bernie Sanders movement.
With the era of online communications and people having little time to read and research, I felt that getting my "fiction" story on a video would be more fun than reading an Op Ed article. Yes, it is time-consuming but I love making music and videos! It's truly a passion!
I published a new short video today and this one has my original music. I am registered with the French Authors and Composers Organization "Sacem".
JB: Hold on a second. Don't just drop bombshells and casually walk away. There's so much I want to know. Before we move to the subject at hand, let's hear more about sailing across the Atlantic, please. And share a bit of your background while you're at it.
EH: When I was in high school in Champagne, France, I learned how to sail on an artificial lake created to protect Paris from flooding (Seine River). In Paris, while studying business, being a little bored, my "distractions" were playing volleyball at Paris University Club and learning how to navigate on larger sailboats. Soon, my dream became to sail around the world! Nothing is too unattainable when you are 19 years old!!!
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