Amanda Knox Defense Fund
Like the other posters here, I firmly believe that the media has entirely misrepresented who Amanda really is. I have known Amanda and her family since she was my student in 6th-8th grade science. Whenever Amanda arrived for class, she was prepared, smiling, and eager to learn. She understood complex concepts quickly and took the initiative to respectfully help other students who were "stuck". She loved bunnies and drew them on her papers. Amanda was a joiner – taking on a lead role in the school play, playing pick up basketball at lunch, and setting up special luncheons for our advisory group. She was incredibly well-liked by the entire school community: faculty and students. Our school gives out only one award each year, and it is to the graduating 8th grader who has most exemplified the qualities of community-building and citizenship. Amanda was deservedly the very first student to receive this award.
After Amanda graduated, she continued to visit the school. Even after her younger sister, Deanna, had graduated, they both returned to attend Arts Night performances, annual picnics and just to stop in and say hello. She would come into my classroom and draw those bunnies on my board just to say hi. She reported on how her language studies were going and how excited she was to be travelling abroad. She promised to write.
Not a day has passed since last November that I haven't thought about Amanda. I have wept for Amanda and her entire family for the way she has been portrayed. Like so many others who actually know Amanda and her family, I have developed a new-found skepticism for the media – even the "respected" media. If they can get Amanda so wrong, what else are we, the public, being fed? Amanda is smart and fun, affectionate and loyal. I know that she will return to
Kristin Moore