At the heart of teaching others is the moral imperative to care. Social justice education begins with adopting a disposition to perceive and then act against indecencies and injustices. Teachers are public figures entrusted by a democratic society to act in the best interests of the children in their care. Music educators must embrace this social contract by "going public" or "coming out"--reaching beyond incomplete musical engagements and into larger and more intertwined social, artistic, and political domains. The authors refer to this stance as a public music pedagogy. (Contains 13 notes.)