Is “acting white” a legacy of integration policies that shortchanged blacks?
As the white adoptive parent of two black children, Harvard Law graduate Stuart Buck began to read about education and race and became intrigued by the “acting white” epithet sometimes directed at at high-achieving minority students.
That personal interest grew into a professional one that culminated in a book due out in May, “Acting White, the Ironic Legacy of Desegregation.”
A doctoral student in education at the University of Arkansas, Buck says his research led him to a surprising conclusion, that the “acting white” criticism had its roots in desegregation that wrenched black students from schools and communities they knew and threw them into new schools where they were often reviled, shunned and underestimated.
“The analogy I would draw is treatment for cancer,” said Buck, speaking by phone from Arkansas. “Segregation is like a cancer that we had to get rid of, but the treatment that saved our lives had unintended side effects.”
While black students often attended segregated schools that lacked the resources of white facilities, Buck says the schools served as the connective tissue in a community that historically valued education.
“In segregated schools, black children had consistently seen other blacks succeeding in the academic world,’’ he says. “The authority figures and role models — teachers and principals were all black. And the best students in the schools were black as well.”
While black parents welcomed integration, they had hoped for a merger of black and white schools. Instead, they witnessed the destruction of black schools and the erasure of the culture, community and closeness that the schools had created. Their children marched off to white schools where they experienced hostility and were tracked into lower-level classes. In his research, Buck found many examples of where even new facilities that had housed black schools were abandoned because white parents weren’t willing to send their kids to black schools.
“They did not want to send white schoolchildren into black schools, to be taught by black teachers and disciplined by black principals,” he says.
A University of Georgia and Harvard Law graduate, Buck cites Butler High School in Gainesville, which was built in 1962 but closed seven years later as part of the desegregation plan.
Black principals were demoted or fired, and teachers made to feel unwanted in the integrated settings. Buck notes that Gainesville had 115 white teachers and 70 black teachers in 1966. Three years later, 22 black teachers remained.
The loss was significant to the city’s black students because black teachers usually lived in the same community, knew the families of students and delighted in their successes.
There was an affection that was not easily replicated with white teachers who did not live in the same communities, attend the same churches or shop in the same stores.
In losing their school, Gainesville’s black students lost their mascot, their school colors, their yearbook and newspaper. Buck says the uprooting of black students from familiar and supportive environments was made even more difficult by the reception in their new schools.
Buck draws on news accounts of the era in which white students commented, “This is our school and they are just going to have to adjust.” White female teachers, raised to fear black men, were not comfortable teaching black high school boys.
Buck cites the research showing that capable black students are still less likely to be in advanced classes than white peers. Either out of overt racism or “liberal guilt,” Buck says white teachers did not hold black students to high expectations.
Once reassigned to desegregated schools, black students “were sitting in a classroom with mostly other black students in what they believed to be the ‘dumb’ class, watching as the white students headed to the ‘smart’ class down the hall,’’’ writes Buck.
Dispirited, black students began to associate achievement with white students and ostracize peers who joined the white kids in the ‘‘smart’’ classes down the hall.
Among the research that Buck mentions: The findings of Harvard economist Roland Fryer Jr. that while the popularity of white students rises with grade-point average, black children become less popular the better their grades.
He cites the experience of Ron Kirk, the first black mayor of Dallas, who recalled getting beat up at his newly integrated junior high school for being black and again in his neighborhood the same day for not being black enough.
Buck believes it is important to understand anti-school attitudes because he believes that students must be willing partners in education. “From youngest ages, children love learning, but something happens around 10, 11 or 12,” he says. “We have to understand why it is that children, black or white, don’t want to learn.”
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166 comments Add your comment
Son of Bill Cosby
February 27th, 2010
7:49 am
While there is in fact a Black and a White culture, the Black culture began to take certain artificial shades.
While my parents speak with accents of a seggregated past, my children are creating a new Black speech and accent while attending fully integrated school. Where does this new accent come from? From the Media—CBS/Sony records…etc…that spin off so-called Black-owned labels which are not but whose artists purports to be the voice and the action of Black Urban Youth…
Lee
February 27th, 2010
7:51 am
So this ultra-liberal, politically correct Yankee blames the BLACK putdown of “acting white” on whites.
What a load of malarky.
Vince
February 27th, 2010
8:03 am
Interesting theory,,,,but incorrect.
K.I.M.
February 27th, 2010
8:15 am
I took offense at the title, thinking this blog would be about how speaking proper English has set black people back. Quite honestly, I think the blog title is simply there to spark controversy; however, ‘acting white’ has nothing to do with the article. Perhaps the proper title would have been, “Did desegregation and integration policies shortchange blacks?”
Having heard desegregation stories from my parents, I can say that certain points validated what I’ve already heard. BUT as an individual both my mother and father went on to earn graduate degrees, become moderately successful and raised a fabulous family. I think the deterioration in ‘black’ education occurred in the last 20 years. Perhaps the side effects of desegregation have finally taken a choke hold on the black community – but I have trouble reconciling my family’s experience to the collective black experience. (And on a different topic, if this theory holds, it would also aim to explain the higher incidence of unemployment in the black community as the uneducated/unskilled are subject to lower employment rates).
The phrase ‘acting white,’ hits home with me because I’ve been told that I act white through out life. For example, I turned the derogatory nickname of “Oreo” and turned it into a name I could stomach “Cookie” when I was in middle school. I didn’t go to an HBCU, I grew up around in suburbia with all whites and therefore adopted the cultural norms as my social paradigm, I work in Corporate America (and like it), I hate the fact that I’m supposed to connect with people simply based on race rather than shared experiences/perspectives. All of those qualities make me who I am, and I’m proud of who I am…and don’t think I’ve been shortchanged in the least. And I’m not sure I’d call my style, “acting white,” I’m acting human – reacting to my life’s circumstances.
jkpatlanta
February 27th, 2010
8:54 am
As a white teacher in an all black school the problem of “acting white” is still prevelant. Many high achieving students are called out by school mates for that and many do not want to take the higher level and AP class for fear of being torrmented. One day, hopefully this country will be able to get over the race issue and only worry about what the students can do academicaly.
Reality Check
February 27th, 2010
9:01 am
In losing their school, Gainesville’s black students lost their mascot, their school colors, their yearbook and newspaper. Buck says the uprooting of black students from familiar and supportive environments was made even more difficult by the reception in their new schools.
We in Atlanta know how this is……some white schools were closed, most renamed for blacks, whites started moving out of the areas that were once thriving and now are the worst of slums populated mostly by blacks, the APS is now in chaos and now someone’s saying it’s because I’m white. I don’t know who this guy is but, it sounds like to me he’s got a chip on his shoulder and is in bad need of a good dose of reality.
Ole Guy
February 27th, 2010
9:11 am
While going through the teacher indoc process, I learned that many educators with the letters DEE and AAR preceeding their names where in fact not really educators by trade, but publishers. Many DEE AARs with whom I came into contact (lots) touted credentials of so many years as an educator whereupon further investigation revealed that the “so many years” included months and months actually teaching. Whereas a chief pilot has logged thousands of hours behind the stick, and a chief surgeon has actually performed many many…perhaps thousands…of proceedures, an educator with the esteemed DEE AAR is, more than likely, a story writer, a publisher.
So it is when I read this excellent review of educational history, dating back to my generation’s high school years. While the facts are sadly true…yes, I remember the separate but equal concept, however, there was nothing at all equal. While we rode the bus to school, daily we would pass the separate-but-definitely-not-equal facilities in what many refered to as “N” Town.
So it is in reading this fine historical survey that I find one issue of particular interest: Just exactly what does the good DEE AAR mean by “…the erasure of culture…”? Could this mean that “the white world” insists on clear speech, and not what has, in recent years, been sanctified as “ebonics”?
Could it mean that the “white world”, particularly the business world, insists on speech emanating from the mouth and not from the flailing about of head and hands? Could it possibly mean the expectance of entitlement in many forms from public dole to so-called reverse discrimination when ultimate qualifications are based on factors far-removed? At the expense of mindlessly being labeled racist and losing the remainder of my sensitivity ribbons, I would suggest casting an eye about the leadership within the govt entities we write of in these blogs.
In sanctifying the behaviors and expectations of the Black Community as “cultural”, the good DEE AAR has, in effect, solidified those behaviors which we, as caring citizens, wish to erase…the thirst for knowledge, the desire to advance, are all labeled as “acting white”. Meanwhile, the “culture” of which the DEE AAR writes is all-too-often decried as “putting the black man down”. When it boils down to cultural issues, I seriously doubt if that knowledge resides in many of us, regardless of race. Could it be that many of these issues of “racial harmony” are indeed borne of insecurity and guilt? I believe that is better known as an ingredient in political correctness. ANY QUESTIONS?
Chris Murphy, Atlanta, GA
February 27th, 2010
9:18 am
I think- and we’re reading Maureens’ (capable, I’m sure) synopsis, not the whole study- it rings true. It is not something that we whites necessarily have to do anything about- now- but blacks would be wise to revisit their history, and see if some adjustments could be made. For example, researching the old black high schools, finding graduates and learning about the cultures of those schools, maybe resurrecting some reunions and finding mascots, events and triumphs of those times to see where they could fit in again in the community. And, for sure, some of those old teachers and administrators would have some good advice on how to deal with some issues we have now. Back then, they must have dealt with, daily, Why should we work hard? What does it matter? It’s still the question that black kids ask of us, despite huge changes in attitudes and reality.
Chris Murphy, Atlanta, GA
February 27th, 2010
9:19 am
Filter grab. Cripes, I hate that, it is egregiously annoying.
Jennifer
February 27th, 2010
9:20 am
An awful lot of this posting seems to me to ring true and make an awful lot of common sense.
Patman
February 27th, 2010
9:26 am
As a black man who is not a RepubliKKKan or conservative, that observation is a crock of you know what! We’ll neve get anywhere if, instead of taking responsibility for our issues and dealing with them, we continue to try to shift blame to the white man! Does anyone truly believe that those who are supposedly responsible for our issues are going to be the ones to resonve them? I’m raising two boys and I teach them to put their best foot forward and to carry themselves in a respectable way no matter who may think that they’re “acting white.” Those who think that way have their own ignorance and upbringing to blame, not some nameless, faceless white person!
ScienceTeacher671
February 27th, 2010
9:41 am
As someone who experienced the integration process first-hand (I suspect some of the posters here are too young to have done so) and as someone who teaches in a “majority-minority” school, many of Buck’s points make sense to me.
I will note that the explanation of Buck’s work presented here is greatly condensed and most-likely simplified (by necessity), and that the full explanation of the “acting white” phenomena is probably much more complex and nuanced.
Pierre
February 27th, 2010
9:44 am
I think Buck’s argument definitely has historical merit. The tragedy is that the wrongs that were inflicted upon the grandparents and parents of today’s students have been internalized by the black community and have evolved into an elaborate, intractable form of self-sabotage. By associating traditional forms of academic success with “acting white,” the black community is only hurting itself over and over, especially since success in today’s and tomorrow’s economy depends more and more on formal education.
As an educator, I see this self-sabotage–this belligerent defense of one’s own ignorance, this retreat into a large, alienated group of one’s similarly hostile peers,and the immense insecurities that have engendered it–played out over and over again. So much promise ends up in self-imposed failure, all with the quiet approbation of the black community. It’s sickening and frustrating to see. As a white man, I’m largely “forbidden” to talk about this in the public sphere, but it seems no one is allowed to talk about it. Look at what happened to Bill Cosby years ago when he broached the topic. He was dismissed as not being black enough (ie. acting and talking white) and therefore he didn’t have the “right” to speak to the issue.
Two other observations. It seems that, with a few exceptions, schools in the greater Atlanta area have by and large undertaken a kind of de facto re-segregation. This re-segregation, now a good 20 years in the making, has not resulted in a renaissance of community and achievement at the overwhelmingly black schools. Quite the reverse. Secondly, there are certainly black parents who want their children to achieve in the conventional academic manner. What schools do you think they move heaven and earth to have their children attend?
Lee
February 27th, 2010
9:47 am
In other news, trainers who put Shetland Ponies in the same pasture as Kentucky Thoroughbreds can’t figure out why they didn’t magically transform into race horses.
For the past 50 years, the politically correct pathogens have been trying to explain away the failed integrationist policies resulting from the hideous Brown vs. Board decision. Ignoring the obvious, they blame whitey.
Yada, yada, yada….
LSH
February 27th, 2010
9:53 am
The problem with comparing desegration with cancer is that however awful the cure is, it’s still a cure. Cancer survivors view their treatment as a horrificially difficult time in their lives. But however primitive and dibilitating the treatment may be, cancer surviors SURVIVE their treatment. Many of them are actually stronger and healthier after their treatment. They don’t sit around and bemoan their fate, they get up, brush themselves off and GET ON WITH THEIR LIVES. 50 years after desegration started, I for one am very tired (and don’t listen anymore) to the continued bemoanment of some African-Americans who blame everything that is wrong with some of their children on whites. I see that desegration did not go the way some people envisioned it- it’s time to get on with already.
Happy Teacher
February 27th, 2010
9:54 am
Go away Lee…
Nikole Allen
February 27th, 2010
9:59 am
@ Lee—-I am not sure what your pony, racehorse analogy means, but there is research that suggests that when you integrate schools based on class (which often coincides with race), students in poverty increase their achievement. Well-off students stay the same, but they were fine to begin with.
Jeff
February 27th, 2010
10:01 am
And white kids “acting black” AREN’T looked down upon or made fun of?
Jeff
February 27th, 2010
10:03 am
I grew up in the 80’s and I went to a public school that was literally 50/50. Why did the white kids at that school tend to score better and be financially more successful than the black kids? I suspect the answer depends on the color of YOUR skin.
ScienceTeacher671
February 27th, 2010
10:08 am
Jeff, were the white kids at that school better off financially while you were in school, after graduation, or both?
octex
February 27th, 2010
10:10 am
Agree with Jeff.
K.I.M.
February 27th, 2010
10:16 am
The blog title is extremely misleading. It’s more so a pontification about the impact of desegregation. My inner Shelby Steele comes out and says, I can’t speak on the collective black society…but I can speak on my individual experience.
I remember stories my father told me about desegregation. My mother went to boarding school where she was the ‘only one.’ Despite the stressful environments that they endured, they were academically successful and went on to earn graduate degrees, and were successful enough in their careers to put 3 children through college.
Culturally, they understood that education unlocked opportunity. I witnessed that sentiment in both my parent’s and grandparents generation. … See More
I’m not sure when the cultural shift occurred in which education was no longer valued Perhaps current generations take it for granted. I think the deteriorating culture is relatively a new thing and I don’t buy into the theory presented in the article, even though I could see where the author is coming from.
catlady
February 27th, 2010
10:22 am
“Buck cites the research showing that capable black students are still less likely to be in advanced classes than white peers. Either out of overt racism or “liberal guilt,” Buck says white teachers did not hold black students to high expectations.”
Yet when black students are held to behavioral expectations or grades in order to get in AP classes, parents cry “racism”. You can’t have it both ways. (See the protests that Gwinnett county has “too many” black kids in trouble for behavior)
We do the same thing for poor kids, or kids from single parent homes, or sped kids. Feeling sorry for someone does not do them any favors. It is one thing to understand that this child or that child has a tough time. Virtually every kid, black or white, has something that interferes with their learning. Even rich kids are frequently “cursed” by their wealthly status.
I find it interesting that, in my travels, I have seen other cases of “acting white” syndrome, yet no people of other races were involved. What it tells me is, this is a UNIVERSAL problem, rather than related to American history.
catlady
February 27th, 2010
10:25 am
Everyone needs someone to look down on. If you are at the bottom of the list, you manufacture a way to look down on the ones “above” you.
James
February 27th, 2010
10:33 am
I think there that the idea of becoming less popular the better grades you have is more an issue of gender that of race. With girls, if you are pretty, it doesn’t matter if you are really smart or not, you will be popular, but typically the most popular boys, whether it is a predominantly “white” school or not, are the jocks. It is very seldom that your valedictorian and mathlete captain also are voted homecoming king or prom king. I think it would be an interesting research topic to see how many Prom Kings or Homecoming Kings were the valedictorian or saludatorian vs. Prom/Homecoming Queens were Val/saludatorian. I bet you would actually find that the percentages are the same at predominantly black schools vs. predominantly white ones.
pierre
February 27th, 2010
10:38 am
It looks like my comments didn’t show up, so I’ll try again. I think Buck has a historical point here, but the tragedy is that the wrongs suffered by the grandparents and parents of today’s black students have been internalized across the generations and have evolved into an deep and entrenched form of self-sabotage. As an educator I see it over and over again: the belligerent defense of one’s own ignorance; the retreat into a like-minded and hostile group of one’s own peers; the enormous insecurities and sense of inadequacy that feeds and compounds this hostility. All this seems to happen with the tacit acquiescence of the black community, and of course the ones really hurt by it are black students and the black community. Thus the cycle continues and the recriminations fly.
As an educator it is always frustrating, often sickening, to see. Yet as a white man I am not really allowed to voice this in the public arena. It seems no one really wants to talk about it and confront it. Remember what happened to Bill Cosby a number of years ago for raising this and a number of other points about problems in the black community? He was deemed not black enough (ie. acting and talking white) and therefore he was seen within his own (supposed) community as not having the right to speak to the issue.
A couple of other points. One: with some exceptions, the greater Atlanta area has undergone a de facto re-segregation of schools over the last 20 or so years–just go to something like greatschools.net to have a look at the racial breakdown of each school; however, twenty years on, I’m not sure this re-segregation has brought with it any renaissance of community and achievement in the overwhelmingly black schools and communities. Two: among the significant amount of black parents who want their children to achieve in the conventional academic sense so that their children will have a chance in an economy where more and more one has to have academic credentials to find a decent career, what schools do you think they move heaven and earth to have their children attend?
Maureen Downey
February 27th, 2010
10:40 am
Lee. Buck is from Arkansas and went to UGA for undergrad and Harvard for law. He is 35 with six kids, two of whom are adopted. Not sure why you are labeling him a liberal, politically correct Yankee. I have no idea of his politics based in either his book or my hour interview with him. So, how can you make that observation?
Maureen
AlreadySheared
February 27th, 2010
10:48 am
Pretty much ALL of the problems I experience in life are caused by outside factors that are simply beyond my control. This has both plusses and minuses.
On the minus side, this leads to tremendous frustration and anger on my part, along with some despair. Complain though I might, the outside factors that cause me so much trouble (history, society, the attitudes of others who refuse to change to make things better for me) are so massive and overwhelming that I can’t do anything about them.
However, on the plus side, since these factors simply WILL NOT YIELD to my desire for their change, there really isn’t anything I myself need to do to make my life better. It is, quite simply, out of my hands. All I can do is endure, suffer my lot in life, and hope/agitate for changes in these confining external factors so that things will be better for me.
Until that occurs, I’m not real happy about things. But on the other hand, I’m pretty much off the hook.
Philosopher
February 27th, 2010
10:58 am
Maureen, it’s simple…if you suggest that those less well-off than yourself may be held back or oppressed by anything other than their own doing, (or that, God forbid, white middle and upper class might have some culpability or a responsibilty to offer aid)you are a liberal.
Philosopher
February 27th, 2010
11:05 am
@AlreadySheared: All wrapped up in a nice little package…got it all figured out. How many years did it take to come up with that glorious epiphany? It’s great… leaves us with no responsibilty to deal with “them” and now we sleep well at night, knowing that “they” are content with their lot in life. Hmmmmm
James
February 27th, 2010
11:10 am
Maureen,
what do you think? Can you find out if there is any research on this already: The number of Valedictorians/Salutatorians who were also Homecoming/Prom King or Homecoming/Prom Queen and if there is a breakdown by race?
Please advise.
Maureen Downey
February 27th, 2010
11:11 am
James. I wil check, although I would be surprised to see any academic research. Purely observational, I have seen many homecoming/prom kings who were also the quarterbacks.
Maureen
Chris Murphy, Atlanta, GA
February 27th, 2010
11:13 am
@Patman: “Does anyone truly believe that those who are supposedly responsible for our issues are going to be the ones to resonve (sic) them? ” I have used the same rhetorical question in some discussions. But I didn’t see the study as pointedly ‘blaming’ whites, as recounting the historical steps that show the evolution of behavior, IMO.
Lee
February 27th, 2010
11:19 am
Maureen, I was incorrect when I called him a Yankee. The ultra-liberal, politically correct moniker still stands….
Lee
February 27th, 2010
11:20 am
BTW, politically correct has little to do with politics….
Lee
February 27th, 2010
11:28 am
Here we are almost 60 years after Brown vs. Board and people still tip toe around the race and IQ issue. Integration took a group of people with a mean IQ of 85 and dropped them into a academic setting with a group of people with a mean IQ of 100 and they wonder why it didn’t work out.
60 years later, we still talk about the black/white achievement gap. Folks like Mr. Buck blame it on whitey.
60 years ago, the not-so-politically-correct said that integration would ruin education for all. They knew that trying to educate two academically disparate groups was an exercise in futility. Here we are in 2010 with a perpetual “education crisis.”
Connect the dots.
Philosopher
February 27th, 2010
11:29 am
@Lee…so what?! Thank God for a few ultra liberals to balance the stingy, hard-hearted, self-absorbed ultra conservatives. Without them, the effects of segregation on anyone’s education wouldn’t even yet be an issue.
Dave
February 27th, 2010
11:36 am
Losing the Race by John McWhorter a good read on the subject.
eazye
February 27th, 2010
11:58 am
intergration in a sense was the worst thing to ever happen……..it was not natural.. it was “forced”..black people were “flim flammed, bamboozled, hoodwinked, whatever else u can say and tricked into believing that intergration would be better…….now u hardly have any black owned businesses, banks, gas stations, etc etc…..
asians, hispanics, and other groups are not concerned about intergration…..their communities are flourishing….why not black people??? hmmm? because of intergration……… as fred sandford would say “u big dummy”…….lol
and quit ending social experiments in schools……. its not abt educating kids anymore……. thats why the liberals dont want vouchers………some teachers teach cuz they cant get another job…. its a job of last resort…..and teachers dont wanna teach and kids dont wanna learn……. and black teachers already feel that cant teach and disciple black kids in the classroom so they give up and dont really wanna teach……
Marney
February 27th, 2010
12:02 pm
I would suggest the book. “Eight Habits of the Heart; the timeless values that build strong communities–within our homes and our lives.” by Clifton Taulbert. who also wrote “When We Were Colored” which was made into a movie some years back.
I think it is a reflection that affirms these ideas. They are not new observations, but maybe we need to have the discussion again.
Issue Zero
February 27th, 2010
12:07 pm
Nothing in education has the ability to bridge the achievement gap. No program, nor any amount of money can have demonstrable results until the rate of illegitimate births, and deadbeat dad-ism is brought into alignment with the general population. PERIOD
DAVID: AJC truth Detector
February 27th, 2010
12:22 pm
YOU CAN LAY THE BLAME FOR THE FAILURE OF MOSTLY BLACK SCHOOLS on LIBERALISM….the idiots in the LIBERAL EDUCATION SYSTEM
DAVID: AJC truth Detector
February 27th, 2010
12:24 pm
mr. BUCK………ALL THIS IS OLD KNOWLEDGE…..BEEN OUT THERE A LONG TIME
DAVID: AJC truth Detector
February 27th, 2010
12:31 pm
STEWART BUCK———YOU ARE SO FULL OF YOURSELF——BLAME IT ALL ON WHITEY
Philosopher
February 27th, 2010
12:36 pm
@ Lee: Since the goal of segregating schools should have been the abolishment of academic disparity, the dots lead to failure to meet that goal. If you are in actuality, talking about intellectual disparity, you are obligated to produce concrete evidence for such, or the dots lead, as I suspect they do, to ignorance, racism and bigotry…the real source of the failure to dissolve academic disparity.
the prof
February 27th, 2010
12:44 pm
Hmmmm……once again, I see BAD parenting (regardless of race) leading to BAD offspring.
ScienceTeacher671
February 27th, 2010
1:15 pm
Does Buck believe this is mainly a southern phenomenum, or does he think his findings are valid nationwide?
Are there similar things going on, say in the southwestern U.S. where there is traditional prejudice against Mexican-Americans, or in California where there has been oppression of Orientals?
susan
February 27th, 2010
1:16 pm
The problem facing a substantial number of blacks in the United States today is assimilation. The “acting white” epithet so common among many young blacks today — above all in the hypersegregated areas south of the Mason-Dixon line and in urban ghettos throughout the country — constitutes the rejection of belonging to a mainstream society which, in reality, is quite diverse, hyper competitive, and, despite everything, more open than its counterparts elsewhere in the developed and developing world.
History is far from irrelevant. After the Civil War, Reconstruction was sabotaged for political expediency. One hundred years later, legal desegregation was not accompanied by meaningful economic empowerment. Today, however, mainstream society has made way for a well-educated, assimilated black president (which is not to suggest that white nationalism and racism do not continue to be a powerful force, especially in the South).
Unless a credible, selfless black leadership emerges that stresses education and family stability as the keys to assimilation, black society as a whole will continue to suffer and grow relatively poorer in an economy defined by competition across national borders.
Lee
February 27th, 2010
1:21 pm
@Philosopher, “…ignorance, racism and bigotry…the real source of the failure to dissolve academic disparity.”
More blame whitey I see.
Blacks disparage other blacks by saying they are “acting white”, it is the fault of “ignorant, racist whites.”
Blacks go to the same schools, use the same textbooks, attend the same classes as their white counterparts, but yet still score lower on every metric (SAT, ACT, Graduation rate, CRCT, ad infinitum), it is the fault of “ignorant, racist whites.”
I really must buy me some of those rose colored glasses you wear.
I can say “rose colored” can’t I. I mean, MARTA named the Doraville line the “Yellow Line” and the Asians had a hissy fit.
Lord knows I don’t want to OFFEND anyone.
Oh wait, I said “Lord”. That might offend the athiests.
This politically correct crap is confusing. No wonder they screw everything up….
74Dawg
February 27th, 2010
1:22 pm
This may be true of some schools. However,In schools where I was growing up at the time, the formerly black schools,which were about the same age,were used . The principle of the black high school became Principal of the integrated Henry County high school,because he had seniority. There was violence and abuse directed at blacks at first,but that subsided and was not tolerated. As blacks became the majority for a while, the violence problems were on the other side-actual riots took place.
What happened,happened for the best,for all concerned,even with attendant problems. What that has to do with current black attitudes about “acting white”,I just don’t see. Wouldn’t cultural assimilation as with German,Irish ,Italian and others be another way to describe “acting white”,if by acting shite you mean speaking good English and trying to succeed?
AlreadySheared
February 27th, 2010
1:28 pm
@Philosopher: Didn’t you read my post?! ” I’m not real happy about things”!!
My point is that this research about the historical basis of why kids are motivated to self-sabotage falls under the category of TBU – True, But Useless. Dwelling on stuff that is not going to change, people who aren’t going to change, and conditions that aren’t going to change instead of figuring out what I can do to change things for the better is a waste of time.
Every minute I spend rehashing the injustices of the the past is a minute I don’t spend figuring out what I can do to make things better now.
jay
February 27th, 2010
1:36 pm
I am a product of school integration from the 1960’s. My parents thought
it was the worst thing to ever happen. For me, its been one of the best things. I learned to let go of a lot of hate.
Philosopher
February 27th, 2010
1:49 pm
I’m glad to hear that-sorry if I misinterpreted, but it didn’t come through in the first post. And I absolutely agree- what’s happened, has happened, we can’t dismiss it, but we do need to incorporate the history our forward actions.
Chuckles
February 27th, 2010
1:51 pm
Blacks are the only people that base all decisions on the color of their skin. No other people groups do this. Like businesses make decisions on tax outcomes, Blacks make decisions on how it effects their Blackness. And they always stick together as Blacks first. as opposed to Americans first. Just an dumb white hick observation.
The Carnivore
February 27th, 2010
1:55 pm
Lee is right. It may be politically incorrect for some, but he is right. I think that immersing black kids into a white setting probably does help behavior and grades some, but you cannot expect any “achievement gap” to ever be closed completely.
A better experiment would be to remove the whites from the equation and have schools that are half black and half Asian. Without the old slavery argument to fall back on, would the blacks adopt the
Asian work ethic and try to keep up, or would they remain behavioral problems, mired in academic futility?
Who has it helped?
February 27th, 2010
2:14 pm
The question no one is asking is: Has integration helped anyone? It certainly has not helped whites, and many have chosen to move districts or go to private school to avoid a dumbed down situation. I don’t think it has helped blacks either. Their choices are “acting white” and the accompanying ostracism, or acting black and hurting themselves by poor grades and poor behavior.
It has not helped taxpayers, who have shouldered big tax bills to try to prop up a failing system. Hispanics may have been helped – I am not sure though. Asians have clearly been hurt the most – the lowest common denominator approach makes it tough to learn much, although it is easy for them to dominate the top of the class rankings.
Besides, society is pretty good at self-segregating anyway. Every racial group tends to stick together in a school context. Why is the government so intent on forcing something that probably should not be forced? And that may not be good for anyone involved?
2000lb elephant
February 27th, 2010
2:23 pm
Nothing interesting here, please move along.
Tony
February 27th, 2010
2:27 pm
Excuses. Excuses. Excuses. You know, until a person decides to do something about his or her own situation, there is absolutely nothing another can do to help them. Sometimes I think our current political philosophies that try to place blame on schools cause us to waste a lot of valuable energy on students who don’t care and don’t want to get out of the mire of poverty.
One of the best things about American education is that if a person WANTS to learn, they have at their fingertips the very best opportunities in the world. Our current policies place to much blame on the wrong people – namely teachers – for the lack of desire of others to engage in learning.
It is well past time for people to stop making formal excuses about why this group or that group “can’t” learn, and it is high time that we stopped supporting the students and families who fail to get with the program.
Veteran teacher, 2
February 27th, 2010
2:43 pm
Tony-Hear, hear. Well said!!!!
Intowner
February 27th, 2010
2:56 pm
With all the interracial marriages, people are becoming more multicultural.It will be interesting to see what the next census shows. I know several people who are 1/2 black, 1/4 black, etc.
So isn’t this article irrevelant in 2010?
Proud African American
February 27th, 2010
3:11 pm
I am the product of the integration era. My father was a doctor and mother an educator. My grandmother was also an educator who believed that it was our responsibility to use our talents and skills to help our community grow. As a result of their positive upbringing, my parents utilized “parental choice” in educating their children and sent us to some of the most prestigious schools in the country.
Our education was exemplary but the connection with our culture was lacking. To supplement this void, my parents educated us within our home. Through familial connections, oral history, trips to cultural places, cultural arts and exposure to our heritage in other avenues, I was given the freedom and desire to be a proud African American. I was the President of the Student Council in a predominantly white high school, representative to the Model United Nations in Europe, achieved a high GPA, and was a winner in a state Miss Black America contest. M goal in life was always to share the pride of my culture and educate youth within the African American community.
Each day I help children to be proud, strong academically and socially, and I strive to overcome the disparities that exist within America between the races. I help our children realize that they are talented, intelligent and have the power to dream and accomplish their dreams. I see the effects of single parent homes, poverty, poor choices in television viewing, drugs, and other societal problems that plague my culture. But I also see hope, dreams and young people who work hard to accomplish success daily. I see my purpose in life to nurture the young to be a positive contributor to our nation….
There are many like myself….I have friends and acquaintances throughout the country who have similar backgrounds and visions. Collectively, we are working to ensure that Brown vs Board of Education was not in vain. One of my friends’ uncle was Charles Hamilton Houston who worked on the monumental legislation Brown vs Board of Education. She and I often reflect on the impact that it had on our nation……
The good news about the effects of integratioon is too clear to deny. In the past few decades, African American fortunes and prospects have soared toward the heavens. We as an African American community have entered virtually every sector of American society and breathed
life into the dream of becoming a part of the American dream. It’s too late to put the racial-justice genie back in the bottle. It’s time to acknowledge what America and African-Americans together have accomplished and become. Today we as a world can see the effects of integration by the election of the first African American President of the United States, the Honorable Barack Hussein Obama.
The bad news, however, is equally profound, and it can be summed up with two simple facts. Despite all the progress of the last several decades, we continue to talk about Black America as a place and a people apart. We are not a world apart, we are an integral valuable part of this country.
As I look into the eyes of the many children that I impact each year, I reflect on the poem “I Too Sing America” by Langston Huges.
…..I’ll be at the table When company comes. Nobody’ll dare Say to me,
“Eat in the kitchen, “Then. Besides, They’ll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed– I, too, am America.
Mary Grabar
February 27th, 2010
3:25 pm
You can’t win: white teachers “did not hold black students to high expectations.” But if they grade just as harshly then they’re racist; they’re accused of being harder on black kids than on white kids. So, no matter what people do, bus their kids all over town or insist on keeping them in neighborhood schools, they’re guilty. You can’t win. Why don’t we just get over this race thing and focus on learning? First, as I said before, get rid of the education schools. They’re the dumping ground for people with an agenda who can’t make the cut in other departments.
Citizen Joe
February 27th, 2010
3:35 pm
jkpatlanta,February 27th, 2010 8:54 am – you stated that ” As a white teacher in an all black school the problem of “acting white” is still prevelant. Many high achieving students are called out by school mates for that and many do not want to take the higher level and AP class for fear of being torrmented.” My daughters attended a predominately white school and what you have stated applied to them as well . . had nothing to do with race. Often they would tell me if they were viewed by other students as being smart they were called names and tormented. Bear in mind these were predominately white students. I think what often folks want to focus on as being a black issue more often times than not is an issue for all races.
Happy Teacher
February 27th, 2010
3:44 pm
Fascinating, albeit brief, look at what makes a great teacher for this generation of scholars:
http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/video/secrets-americas-greatest-teachers-9961455
dbow
February 27th, 2010
3:50 pm
Yet another log on the fire of blame whitey. So, black families welcomed integration? That’s the most laughable thing I’ve read in a long time. Everybody needs to get on with their lives already and stop blaming others. How many more years of affirmative action do these people need before they can finally be called successful. The black culture will not rise out of the ashes of racism until they refuse to take the welfare checks and the assistance of government whose only purpose is to maintain the status quo.
bootney farnsworth
February 27th, 2010
4:00 pm
what a profound load of crap.
I wonder what the next excuse will be?
Educator2
February 27th, 2010
5:57 pm
Please remove my post from the filter.
Sally
February 27th, 2010
6:14 pm
Education will improve for all when everyone starts acting like humans!!!! All of this Black and White needs to stop!!!
high school teacher
February 27th, 2010
6:15 pm
You can’t change history. We can explain or attempt to explain the attitudes that pervade our society, but unless we talk about a way to change them, we are all wasting our breath (or in this case, energy expended from our fingers on the keyboard) in determining the cause.
I face this same sort of issue in my white-majority school. We have a mixed rural/suburban population, and I have a hard time motivating many rural kids to achieve. Their philosophy is that their parents didn’t graduate high school, yet they run a chicken farm and make a decent living, so why should they worry about graduating?
High achieving students are ostracized by low achieving students, no matter the color of their skin. Who cares why? I care about trying to change it.
Rev. Mrs. Vidalia Toombs
February 27th, 2010
6:32 pm
Good job. Now take the rest of the evening off. You deserve it. A little sour mash…
Educator2
February 27th, 2010
6:47 pm
I wonder why my comments that criticized the posting of this article has not been released from the filter?
Hank Williams Jr.
February 27th, 2010
6:52 pm
Make em learn the american english corriculum instead of obama-phonics. No crime acting civilized.
AND PULL UP YPUR PANTS, TURN YOUR HAT STRAIGHT AND GET A JOB !
Oh the children
February 27th, 2010
7:00 pm
Fascinating, albeit brief, look at what makes a great teacher for this generation of scholars:
Have children somehow genetically mutated over the last generation, that they are fundamentally incapable of learning in traditional ways?
Or have we as a society lost our will to discipline, and put the responsibility for learning squarely where it belongs; on the student?
B. Killebrew
February 27th, 2010
7:02 pm
http://stuartbuck.blogspot.com/
B. Killebrew
February 27th, 2010
7:03 pm
http://www.stuartbuck.com/?page_id=2
Philosopher
February 27th, 2010
7:28 pm
@Tony: You could get away with that argument if it were based on fact. But we ALL know where the best schools and the best teachers are…and who has access to them and who does not. But it was a good try…
Ole Guy
February 27th, 2010
7:29 pm
HERE HERE, Oh! Abolish PC, announce the standards, and let’s build a few fires under some butts!
BlondeHoney
February 27th, 2010
7:44 pm
Lee is an idiot. And Proud African American, I salute you; you are making this world a better place. Oh and by the way, I am as pale sickly white as they come…but i don’t see color until I come in contact with many of you on these blogs
retired
February 27th, 2010
8:02 pm
As a beginning teacher I remember having in-service with Black teachers who began their careers at segregated schools. There expectations were so high. They were like my mom’s generation. They taught me a lot about teaching minority students. I still say the biggest problem in low income areas in low expectations relegating people to poverty. These fine ladies who learned to do way more with way less left an impression in my “save the world” beginning teacher that served me well for 32 years.
Happy Teacher
February 27th, 2010
8:19 pm
OTC – Of course the children haven’t genetically mutated, but our society has. Look around…internet, handhelds, laptops, video games. The norms and mores have profoundly changed, and “traditional” is no longer a relevant term.
I know this is unsettling to many, but it might explain some of the gaps between teachers/students these days and how teachers constantly decry how the students have changed. Is it the changing student body that is the problem, or the unwillingness of some teachers to change?
Voiceof Reason
February 27th, 2010
8:55 pm
@ CitizenJoe – AMEN!!!!
This entire discussion is BS. Do some ignorant blacks call “nerds” white? Yes. Do ignorant whites call “nerds” names too? Yes. This reminds me of black on black crime discussions. Criminals commit offenses against people that look like them. Yet, we talk about “black on black” crime like it’s something new that only dispicable blacks do. Georgia has the highest drop out rate in the nation and other horrible distinctions yet you racist folks want to imply that APS or other blacks are the problem. GEORGIA IS MAJORITY WHITE.
Voiceof Reason
February 27th, 2010
9:00 pm
Thank you retired!!!
Expectations are the BIGGEST factor when it comes to our schools. When kids go to schools with leaky roofs and no textbooks, what does that tell them? When everyone from parents to teachers thinks a little color will “dumb down” their school, what does that say? This country has NEVER expected minorities to do well. For hundreds of years, we worked on the belief that minorities were less capable and many still believe that today (i.e., Lee). Children are the most perceptive people I know. They pick up on society’s expectations and, sadly, many live up to them.
at this point in the game
February 27th, 2010
9:03 pm
Happy Teacher – really? Are you currently in a classroom? Yes, the student body has changed, and yes, any teacher expecting less for their students because of their race or socioeconomical background is the one doing the disservice. I don’t care if you have 30 tvs in your house, and I only grew up with one – get off your butt and learn!!! btw – I am a HAPPY teacher myself that sets high standards for my students no matter who they are.
Alecia
February 27th, 2010
9:08 pm
My 1st grader wanted to know if the phrase “Is we going?” correct. There are students in her class that speak like this and the teacher does not correct them. She was convinced that because the teacher is okay with it, then it must be the correct way to speak. I be expecting teacher correct her if she are speaking like a moron.
oh the children
February 27th, 2010
9:16 pm
The norms and mores have profoundly changed, and “traditional” is no longer a relevant term.
Traditional isn’t a relevant term? Don’t tell that to turkey sellers on Thanksgiving.
Is it the changing student body that is the problem, or the unwillingness of some teachers to change?
The answer is, that we as a nation have allowed children to act in completely unacceptable ways, then expect teachers to accommodate those unacceptable ways, because we as a society lack the will to discipline them. When we, as this state recently did, let slide with the slightest slap on the wrist, the non reporting of over 40,000 discipline incidents in one school system, the problem is most emphatically not teachers unwilling to change, the problem is an education system that is unwilling to support teachers.
Rare, very rare, is the child who will not respond positively to swift, and sure consequences, applied consistently. Without them, the talk of high expectations is just that; talk.
However, lamentably, as rare as it is for a child to not respond positively to sure and consistent consequences, it’s ever rarer that today’s school systems will support teachers in regard to that.
As much as today’s educators like to boost their self esteem with the concept of teacher as uber educator, it really isn’t rocket science. Which is a good thing, because last I checked, there are 3 million or so rocket scientists around to teach our nations children.
Though there are undoubtedly some doozys in the field, as there are in any other profession, it’s not the basic lack of teacher competence that is undermining education today. What’s undermining education today is the undermining the authority of the classroom teacher. If you don’t believe it, when’s the last time you heard Arne Duncan, or before him Margaret Spellings make front page news with a major initiative to address discipline, even though study after study after study shows it to be one of the major reasons teachers leave the profession?
Happy Teacher
February 27th, 2010
9:29 pm
ATPITHG – Look at the link I posted earlier. I think you and I actually agree, as i was just faulting teachers who have lowered expectations for their students because they don’t respond to lessons that are 20 years old.
Students respond to different things now technology-wise, but they always respond to high standards.
http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/video/secrets-americas-greatest-teachers-9961455
oh the children
February 27th, 2010
9:35 pm
Unfortunately the blog monster has eaten my response Happy Teacher
Proud African American
February 27th, 2010
9:37 pm
@ Hank Williams Jr. What is Obama phonics? If by chance you are referring to our President, he is one of the greatest orators of our generation. His exceptional speaking abilities continues to impress not only our country but the world. I wonder about your academic achievement to make such an unintelligent statement…:)
Educator2
February 27th, 2010
9:44 pm
In my opinion, this article was posted to stir controversy on this blog and sensationalize a subject that actually has merit as a problem that needs to be discussed. I am sure that Maureen knows her bloggers well enough that a intellectual dialogue would never occur on this topic due to the racist agenda of some to post their IQ theories, etc at every opportunity regardless of the subject. Therefore, I challenge Maureen to not choose topics that by design will create a racial divide. The increased attacks on the teaching profession require teachers to be unified, regardless of color.
This subject requires one to understand three concepts in order to have an intellectual conversation; (1) you must understand the concept of culture, (2) you must understand the affects of the mainstream culture on the non-mainstream culture and (3) you must understand the concepts of classism, racism and gender in the classroom. Many do not have a full grasp on these concepts, thus, it serves no purpose to post this article and provide those with a racism agenda on this blog a platform to post their ill informed, racist “facts”.
Proud African American
February 27th, 2010
9:47 pm
@BlondeHoney….Thank you for your inspiration. I wake up each day with the love of educating children in my heart – all children. My emphasis in working in high needs communities with a high percentage of minority students is challenging but highly rewarding. There are many colleagues of varied ethnic groups – African American, White American, Hispanic American, etc. that dedicate their careers to working in these types of schools. I am proud to say that the educational staff at the schools for which I have worked are committed and spend countless hours in making the lives of our students meaningful and goal oriented.
oh the children
February 27th, 2010
9:48 pm
Let me tell you something else students have always responded to Happy Teacher. Traditional swift and sure consequences, applied consistently. Notice the word severe was not used, just swift, sure, and most of all consistent. Without them, any talk of high expectations is just that; talk.
I know there is this new paradigm of teacher as uberhuman expected to anticipate every one of an infinite number of psychological wants and needs of students, and therefore no discipline problems will present themselves. Society and the public education bureaucracy love it because it absolves them of the job of raising and disciplining children, and puts it in the teachers’ hands. Teachers buy into this nonsense because they apparently developed a collective case of Stockholm Syndrome.
In general terms it’s not the sudden change in students, nor is the the unwillingness of teachers to change; it’s society’s unwillingness to support the teacher that is the problem.
If you don’t believe it, take away a child’s Iphone, XBox, mp3 player, Nikes, soft drinks, junk foods, and TV watching privileges until he learns his time tables, and provide him with nothing but a set of flash cards, and see how quickly he masters them.
What do you bet he’ll master them without even a single education expert to guide him?
Happy Teacher
February 27th, 2010
10:10 pm
I agree with many of your points OTC, apparently our parents had similar ideals…but here is the question I am left with: Am i going to be more successful changing society? Or myself?
I have found that by conceding to the need to chunk my lessons and that by bringing in technology that my students consider “cool”, I am eventually able to tame the impacts of society (that i agree are destructive).
I just think we are kidding ourselves if we want to fix society first…we must adapt. Perhaps we would find more support if we were more willing to change and not always hold the hard line that used to work.
Southerner
February 27th, 2010
10:42 pm
I really think the focus here has to be the achievers vs non-achievers – my ex-husband was from a semi-rural area in the north – his relatives were not convinced of the applicability or need for higher education. They were often scornful of college graduates and used a lot of subtle and non-so-subtle put downs. They would SAY that education was good – but the BEHAVIOR was not consistent. It was demoralizing to see that there were houses with no books, no newspapers or magazines. These people were white – and in my eyes that is the only difference. The behavior is the same. Achievers vs non-achievers and race is not a part of it.
oh the children
February 27th, 2010
10:43 pm
Happy Teacher on the micro level, I would agree you can have more success by adjusting and adapting, than waiting for society to do the same. But on the macro level, teachers and those who support them, need to do a much better job confronting the inherent intellectual dishonesty of the current paradigm called Teacher As Scapegoat.
All you have to do to see it exists is to look at the various vents on the current cheating scandal that almost invariably mention teachers cheating, and almost never mention administrators cheating even as, as this blog pointed out, the evidence leads to the fact that it was administrators who were the most likely to have the time and unfettered access to make such changes.
Teachers can always improve. But accepting the mantle of Teacher As Scapegoat, because we have lost the will to provide structure for our children does not serve their best interests, even if it serves the political purposes of the Arne Duncans of the world.
FLAWoodLayer
February 27th, 2010
10:55 pm
Agree with everything Buck says. I would also add black teachers and administrators that underestimate the ability of black youth to reach high standards. The psychological effects of slavery, Jim Crow, and a culture that still equates “white” with the “norm” has not really been studied or even attempted to be understood. The keys to the success of black youth are not “acting white” but seeking excellence, character, discipline and resilience. All elements deeply engrained in the African and African-American tradition.
Ben Thinken
February 27th, 2010
11:01 pm
I think that for black and white children and our society the breaking up of smaller neighborhood schools and the loss of the connection to the community even in the name of desegregation has had a negative impact on education. Today the neighborhoods surrounding the schools do not seem tied to the school and so many of the students come in from some distance and are in the area only during the school day. Many parents have never been near the school that their children attend. So often in our zeal to do right we commit blunders that cost us for years and have real serious unintended consequences.
Enlightened
February 28th, 2010
12:05 am
Interesting piece. I have often lamented that growing up in my predominately black community was a blessing. All socio-economic levels were in my community and all I had to do was walk a block or two away to be able to dream that I could live like the upper end did. I knew I could because they were black too. Teachers, doctors, business owners. It is the unintended fallout of desegregation. Many of those who could afford to move to areas where they once were forbidden did so. It started the demise of the fabric of the neighborhood.
As far as the erasure of culture; definitely! Our history is only taught in terms of slavery during the requisite period of Black History Month; if we’re lucky. In my black community, black history unfolded before my eyes. It was the politicians, community activists, doctors and the black teachers that cared about us. The smart kids were black and recognized as such. Today, there are schools within schools. The black and brown kids are in regular classes and the white kids are in advanced. No matter how diverse the school, if there are any whites, they will be placed in the advanced classes. Considering that many schools require that teachers make the recommendations for those advanced classes, it is curious indeed. Equally curious is that frequently, early on, school districts/teachers don’t place the kids that don’t look like them in positions to receive the advanced foundational learning to be successful later. The black teachers won’t do it either for fear of their jobs. or because they have begun to subscribe to the school culture.
I’ve had these conversations most of my life with my black friends and more recently with my white friends that I know can partake in a philosophical discussion without taking it as a personal affront.
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
12:38 am
@FLAWoodLayer…Well stated. African-American students are capable, desirous to learn and can achieve at high levels. We must use our knowledge, resources, and power to help ensure the academic success of all African American students. To do this, we must establish a climate of support and collaboration in which all teachers, students, and their families are valued, and each student’s achievement and well-being is monitored and supported as part of a collective schoolwide, family, and community responsibility.
ScienceTeacher671
February 28th, 2010
9:48 am
It is true that both black and white academic achievers have often been ridiculed and teased by their less-achieving classmates. Perhaps, at least in Georgia, this goes back to a culture which largely denigrates education.
I’ve noticed in the schools in which I’ve taught, there are pep rallies and other assemblies to recognize students who achieve athletically, but awards for academic achievers are usually made quietly, out of sight of the rest of the student body. Is there a lesson here?
Proud White American
February 28th, 2010
10:15 am
The promotion of integration in public and private schools has created enormous problems in classrooms across America. Violent behavior has increased as multi-culturalism and diversity programs have forced races together. Many White parents remove their children from such schools due to lowering standards and increasing violence, choosing instead to enroll their children in private or religious schools. Those White students remaining as a minority in public schools are often the victims of reverse discrimination, racial intimidation and violence. In such “diversified” schools, teachers and school administrators are finding it increasingly difficult to provide a safe atmosphere. Even teachers themselves are frequently intimidated and threatened in such schools.
White students have become alienated as textbooks now promote minority pride, while texts focus on White guilt for slavery and past racial discrimination. Whites are collectively blamed for slavery even though historically only a very small percentage of Whites owned slaves. Blaming Blacks as a group for high levels of black crime (a 1,000 percent higher rate than White crime) would be considered hate speech. However, condemning the White race, as a group, for slavery is considered acceptable. Chronic recital of the evils of slavery and racial discrimination increases Black hostility and aggression toward White students and teachers. That hostility, when combined with the high rate of Black violence, poses an increased danger of racially motivated criminal behavior. Thus, most of the campaigns against “racial hate” actually foster hatred and violence against White students and teachers.
Proud White American
February 28th, 2010
10:16 am
We suggest that teachers should clearly instruct students of the overwhelming European American role in the foundation of the United States of America, and of their cultural and scientific contributions that have benefited all races. Such teaching would reduce alienation among White students and lessen resentment among minorities toward White students and teachers. Just as teachers frequently teach students about “great Black men” and the “great achievements of the Black race,” they should not be reluctant to speak about the founding fathers as “great White men” or speak about “great White achievements.” In many schools, the term “White race” always is accompanied with a negative connotation such as “The White race oppressed Blacks.” Such double standards must end if an atmosphere of tolerance and mutual understanding is to exist in public education.
Teachers should reject teaching materials that foster anti-White racial hatred. They should especially be aware of material from the ADL (Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith – a Jewish supremacist organization). ADL material promotes minority resentment and hostility against White Christians, as well as self-guilt among young White students.
Hypocritically, the ADL supports the Jewish supremacist nation of Israel and its half-century of ethnic cleansing against Palestinians; legal torture of political prisoners (the only nation in the world where torture is officially legal); development of illegal biological, chemical and nuclear weapons; the military invasion and occupation of neighboring Lebanon for 17 years (resulting in the death of at least 30,000 civilians); and the state-sponsored segregation of Jews and Palestinians in schools, settlements and housing. While the ADL has campaigned against traditional Christmas carols in American schools, it has supported Israel, a theocratic nation that promotes the Orthodox Jewish religion and acts to suppress the Christian and Muslim faith. The ADL favors opening America’s borders to the non-European Third World, yet supports Israel with a “Jews only” immigration policy that even prevents Palestinians who were born there from returning home. While the ADL stirs up minority resentment against White Americans in American schools, it supports Israel’s ethnic Jewish supremacism.
Proud White American
February 28th, 2010
10:18 am
Because of Black pressure groups such as the NAACP and Jesse Jackson’s PUSH, school administrators are often reluctant to punish Black students who perpetrate violence and discrimination against Whites. Jesse Jackson’s intimidation against the school board in Decatur, Illinois for expelling Black gang rioters makes other school administrators reluctant to take steps to limit black violent offenders. Students who engage in gang violence, Black or White should be removed from public schools. No student should have to be intimidated or endangered by such elements. Furthermore, there must be a single standard for exercise of free speech in public schools. If Blacks are permitted to wear Malcom X or Martin Luther King hats or T-shirts to class, White students should have the same right to have T-shirts, hats, or belt-buckles displaying the Confederate flag or other symbols of White pride and solidarity. Tolerance is a two-way street. Only in an atmosphere of tolerance and mutual respect of differences can the races get along with each other when pernicious federal programs force the races together against their natural desires and wishes.
catlady
February 28th, 2010
10:26 am
I would strongly suggest that what we are calling race is in fact class. I teach in a system with NO black kids (a few biracial). 85% of our “diverse student population” are diverse only on their hair color! (blonde, brown, or red) The other 15% are bicultural (white/Latino) or Latino. HOWEVER, we have the same sort of dynamic–a high proportion of kids who don’t value education, whose parents value “education” because it provides 2 meals and daycare.
Most of my colleagues are people who grew up here in the mountains. Many speak poor English–things like” pit-cher” for picture, “I seen him” and “I had went to the store.” (the latter two are by the speech teacher, a fifth grade teacher with a masters, and an administrator). I can assure you none of them are black.
Ben Thinken, agree with you totally on the loss of community schools. We have seen that here in the last 40 years.
ST671–my observations entirely.
catlady
February 28th, 2010
10:33 am
Why is it the ones that seem to post the first time I submit are the ones that complain about a previous post not showing up, but the ones where I might be making a substantive observation get caught in the filter?
catlady
February 28th, 2010
10:34 am
Is the key to getting things to post the use of the word “filter”?
ScienceTeacher671
February 28th, 2010
11:02 am
Enter your comments here
ScienceTeacher671
February 28th, 2010
11:02 am
I think the filter likes soundbites more than thoughtfulness.
VOR
February 28th, 2010
11:40 am
Lost my post last night…Just wondered why we even talk about this issue. As several have said, all races have ignorant kids that bash the high-achievers. I was a black girl in a predominately white school and I got a lot of flack for being in the gifted program. This is similar to the black on black crime conversation. All races tend to commit crimes against their own. But, we isolate the discussion to blacks.
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
11:57 am
Several people who have made recent posts seem to be off track. Their comments focus more racism and segregation than the subject of integration shortchaning Black Americans. The Civil War and Jim Crow are over. You need to get a grip. We are now in a diverse global society and need to address who we can live in communities of mutual respect, acceptance and harmony. Peace….
ScienceTeacher671
February 28th, 2010
12:23 pm
Proud African American, a serious question that I hesitate to ask on a web board because it might come across as flip: Do you believe that the answer to this and other problems facing the Black community lie largely within or outside of the Black community? Or do you think a dual response is necessary?
My thought is that I mainly teach younger teens, who are inclined toward a lot of personal “drama” at times. I try to teach them that they cannot control others, but they can control their response to those others. We have a lot of children, black and white, who make destructive and self-destructive choices.
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
12:41 pm
Correction from previous post – “HOW we can live in communities of mutual respect, acceptance and harmony.”
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
1:01 pm
@ Proud White American – “pernicious federal programs force the races together against their natural desires and wishes.” If I am not mistaken, our country is diverse and inclusive. The United States is a melting pot of varied ethnicities, races, cultures, religions….. And please explain – “natural desires and wishes”. Is this a fancy term for segregation of the races? Any type of prejudicial attitudes are out of synch with our nations’s quest towards equality and justice.
The increase of racist slurs and incidents on elementary, middle, high and college campuses throughout our nation all point to a revival of hate crimes and overt racism in the U.S. T shirts should not be used as a symbol. Wearing a Tshirt to celebrate Martin Luther King Day is honoring a symbol of world peace and understanding. On the other hand, your desire for children to wear shirts for the Confederacy do not represent peace and understanding. Please do your research on the cause and effects of the Civil War on our nation.
Negative responses to diversity threaten to destroy the precious foundation of our national unity, which is a commitment to equality, freedom and justice for all people. It is possible to redefine the meaning of “America” by helping people learn how to bridge the chasms of ethnic, racial and gender differences and create new ways of honoring ourselves and one another.
just a little question
February 28th, 2010
1:58 pm
@ Proud African American
Why does one need to feel “pride” in a race? You and “Proud White America” seem to be cut from the same cloth. Aren’t we all people first or do you only see things through the social construct of race?
Southron Man
February 28th, 2010
2:13 pm
“The increase of racist slurs and incidents on elementary, middle, high and college campuses throughout our nation all point to a revival of hate crimes and overt racism in the U.S.”
Typical liberal speak. The only people I hear using the dread “N” word these days are black folk.
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
2:31 pm
Response to the above posts: Please read for meaning….that is the foundation of reading comprehension.
I so clearly stated: Negative responses to diversity threaten to destroy the precious foundation of our national unity, which is a commitment to equality, freedom and justice for ALL people. It is possible to redefine the meaning of “America” by helping people learn how to bridge the chasms of ethnic, racial and gender differences and create new ways of honoring OURSELVES AND ONE ANOTHER.
Pride is reflective in the blog subject. The blog name is in reference to the title of the blog and the article which described the legacy of integration policies. If you reference my first blog, I was taught by my great great aunt, grandmother and parents to have pride in my race. They grew up in an era or segregation. Pride in one’s race does not define one as not being inclusive and embracing diversity. An excellent example is the Olympics. The atheletes exhibit price in their cultures and embrace the cultures of the other participants. I view my life similarly. By the way…my great grandfather on my maternal and paternal sides are European Americans. My grandfather on my paternal side is Native American. I am an African American that has an ethnic background that is multicultural. In no way have I suggested in any of my posts that I see our society through the social construct of race. If I did…I would not be embracing my own family.
Southron Man
February 28th, 2010
3:15 pm
“By the way…my great grandfather on my maternal and paternal sides are European Americans. My grandfather on my paternal side is Native American.”
But yet you have thrown them all under the bus and just acknowledge your African-American ancestry.
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
3:20 pm
@Science Teacher671
I applaud your educational commitment and I too experience the daily “drama” of so many youth. In reference to the subject of the blog, understanding resilience and strength among African American youth requires first acknowledging their experience in the United States and recognizing the continuing legacy of oppression and discrimination that affects their daily lives.
We as an educational community must also acknowledge the reality of under-resourced schools, family disruption, negative media influences or negative peer influences that so many African American children face daily. But these obstacles can be overcome by a productive and caring community that focuses on the needs of each individual student.
Educational institutions from pre school to secondary school should ensure that they are providing the resources and support systems that will equip each child to develop to their potential. Caring and well educated teachers and administrators will provide the foundation that so many children need to develop.
By developing the necessary skills for critical and flexible thinking and problem solving and by engaging with academic material and active academic learning experiences designed to meet the needs of our global society, African American children will be better suited to meet societal challenges. It is my sincere belief that this should be the goal of education for ALL children in our nation.
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
3:22 pm
@Southern Man – The definition of an African American is a mixture of varied ethnic groups with Africa being one of the genetic groups. How do you define African American?
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
3:27 pm
Correction: The definition of an African American is a mixture of varied ethnic groups with African ancestry being an inherited gene. Where in Africa? Who knows? I was not raised to view my ethnic group to be European American or Native American. In fact, my birth certificate says “Negro”.
I was however raised to be proud of my family members who did not have the African gene in their known history.
Southron Man
February 28th, 2010
3:47 pm
“How do you define African American?”
As a liberal moniker invented by Je$$ie “shakedown” Jackson.
http://tinyurl.com/y8hhgc6
Now a question for you; I strive for my kith and kin to live in a colorblind society espoused by Dr. King. What do you strive for?
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
4:28 pm
For many, African American is more than a name expressive of cultural and historical roots. The term expresses black pride and a sense of kinship and solidarity with others of the Black African diaspora. The terms to define people with African descent were invented by white Americans. The terms used to identify American blacks were conferred upon the group by whites and were included in the wording of various laws and legal decisions which became tools of white supremacy and oppression. There developed among Black Americans a growing desire for a term of their own choosing. Thus, the term African American became more widely accepted in our country.
As we strive for an inclusive society, I pray that these labels disappear and we become one nation. With the increasing multiracial population, this may become a reality in a few generations. Until then, I must acknowledge that our society is not blind to racial differences. As to colorblind, I cannot agree with your comment SouthernMan. My family reunions are like a rainbow. They have family members with blonde straight hair, curly brown hair, kinky black hair, blue eyes, brown eyes, hazel eyes, thin lips, fully lips, light skin, tan skin, brown skin and dark brown skin…..we are all one family. Some of us are African American, some European American, some Hispanic American and some Native American. We love each other and embrace our cultural similarities and differences. We are truely American and proud to be Americans.
Southron Man
February 28th, 2010
5:00 pm
” As to colorblind, I cannot agree with your comment SouthernMan.”
Okay let me rephrase myself; I hope that my kids will live in a society where “they are judged on the content of their character and not on the color of their skin.” Can you agree with that? Btw its “Southron” not “Southern.”
Hank Williams Jr.
February 28th, 2010
5:38 pm
Southron Man… You cannot argue with ignorance. I have read your discussion with proud affican and to listen to this loser especially upholding oblama and his band of thugs and telling me the Civil War is over tells me all I need to hear from this J.Jackson/ Sharpton socialist. Hell yes the war is over. You are not a slave no more, ok?
Thank Abe Lincoln not MLK or Jessie/Al and the clan.
I for one will NEVER appoligize for what happened 150 years ago and STRONGLY disagree with any state that thinks they need to do so. THAT INCLUDES GEORGIA AND SONNY PURDUE.
Hank Williams Jr.
February 28th, 2010
5:45 pm
Oh, proud affican…..
Yea I wanted to PUKE when you said how great a speaker oblama is……
He hasnt written the first speech (of lies by the way) thats come out of his mouth.
Yea, he’s something else, aint he.
SHORT TIMER…. WILL BE ONE TRICK PONY….. AMERICA LEARNED IT’S LESSON
Ihateracists!
February 28th, 2010
6:13 pm
Southron – I love how southerners and conservatives hold MLK, Jr up today as an example of a good negr0. Yet, every major politician and newspaper denounced him and called him a c0mmunist after his war opposition. He was more hated than Jesse and Al combined! Our government branded him as one of the most dangerous men in America and stalked him…and then he was assasinated.
Why does African-American pride bother you? Is it any different from someone being proud of their Irish or Italian heritage? I see NOTHING wrong with that and hear it ALL of the time. “White” pride tends to be about hating another group. And most “Whites” are Europeans that know where their roots come from. Most African-Americans are biracial and, thanks to slavery, we know very little about our heritage. I would need a $500 DNA test just for some scientist to start guessing where my African family came from. This is why states apologize for slavery….not because anyone here today had slaves….but because it still has a very big affect on today.
Ihateracists!
February 28th, 2010
6:14 pm
Oops…”assassinated”
Ihateracists!
February 28th, 2010
6:20 pm
I LOVE all of the hate that Obama gets on here. LOVE it. It makes my heart smile.
Hank Williams Jr.
February 28th, 2010
6:21 pm
blablabla
Hank Williams Jr.
February 28th, 2010
6:25 pm
love it for as long as it lasts my friend… Like I said, he is a BIG mistake and if blacks think he is giving ANYONE a free ride you are an idiot like him.
GOOD BICYCLE!!
NEVER AGAIN!!
Ihateracists!
February 28th, 2010
6:27 pm
Yeah, the free rides ended with Bush. But, unfortunately, only 2% of the country benefited from that.
Ihateracists!
February 28th, 2010
6:32 pm
I don’t know anyone that was looking for a free ride. That’s reserved for big corporations that keep screwing us all. But, the GOP has done a great job of convincing yall that liberals, unions and minorities are your problem. SMDH!
Hank Williams Jr.
February 28th, 2010
6:32 pm
Hold on to your hat if you thought that was bad and hope you survive the next 3 YEARS. You people just dont get it do you???
Southron Man
February 28th, 2010
7:03 pm
“Southron – I love how southerners and conservatives hold MLK, Jr up today as an example of a good negr0. Yet, every major politician and newspaper denounced him and called him a c0mmunist after his war opposition. He was more hated than Jesse and Al combined! Our government branded him as one of the most dangerous men in America and stalked him…and then he was assasinated.”
You make a lot of assumptions don’t you?
Lee
February 28th, 2010
7:12 pm
So Maureen, is the blog topic tomorrow going to be “How the legacy of integration policies have shortchanged whites?” Fair and balanced reporting, dontchaknow.
Inquiring minds and all that….
NOBama 2012
February 28th, 2010
7:13 pm
For all you proud people, look on the front page of ajc.com….Miguel Starks arrested for Robbery, he is a Clayton County High School graduate and Quarterback for The Citadel……So now lets start blaming the white people for this.
Educator2
February 28th, 2010
7:27 pm
As stated before -”This article was posted to stir controversy on this blog and sensationalize..
I am sure that Maureen knows her bloggers well enough that a intellectual dialogue would never occur on this topic due to the racist agenda of some to post their IQ theories, etc at every opportunity regardless of the subject. Therefore, I challenge Maureen to not choose topics that by design will create a racial divide. Thus, it serves no purpose to post this article and provide those with a racism agenda on this blog a platform to post their ill informed, racist “facts”.”
Maureen , my point has been proven correct!
Proud African American
February 28th, 2010
7:33 pm
@ 2012…..Robert Cook is also in today’s AJC. He is a cop killer and was a graduate of a Geogian high school. And? Are we going to blame any race of people? Not intelligent minds. Educated people understand that crimes are not color conscious. They are individual choices. Your comments do not show anything but blatant racism. This is the kind of mindset that prevents our country from being an inclusive society. AND…….I am soooooo happy that the Honorable Barack Hussein Obama is President of the United States of America.
A Poem quote that is so appropriate for today’s blog:
Yes, I believe we can
trust this voice…
It’s as American,
as calm and confident,
as the wheat fields
of his Grandma’s Kansas–
it’s as charged
with electricity & hope
as the stubborn streets
of the South Side of Chicago–
it’s as serene and full of grace
as the islands of his native Hawaii.
.
He said we could have a new politics
that went beyond the tit-for-tat
and had the audacity to hope
that we really were better than that.
NOBama 2012
February 28th, 2010
7:50 pm
@Proud African American not my point. A black male graduates from a majority black high school, earns his way to the citadel then robs somebody….Why?
FYI, Obama is half white….
Maureen Downey
February 28th, 2010
7:58 pm
Educator 2, I write a lot of blog entries each week, 29 in the past week alone. I write about all sorts of things, including new books that I think are interesting and that are going to spark discussion. I thought Buck’s book, which comes out in May, met that criteria. In addition, he graduated UGA and has many Georgia examples in his book. I am not going to limit my postings because I fear some posters will not be respectful or thoughtful. There is not a single topic that doesn’t attract a bizarre comment or two. It comes with an open forum format.
Maureen
dbow
February 28th, 2010
9:55 pm
Hey proud white guy. I agreed with you right up to the point you lost your mind and started spouting off about the Jewish people. get your facts straight and stop towing the party line. Think for yourself and investigate the truth about what’s really happening over in the middle east. I’ve been there and seen first hand that those “poor” palestinians want nothing but deny Israel’s right to exist ans will stop at nothing. They kill off their own in an effort to destroy a sovereign nation and you have the audacity to compare this article to that situation? You’re a mess.
Legend of Len Barker
February 28th, 2010
10:43 pm
I started researching segregated high school sports in 2004 and in the past couple of years have moved into looking at the total school atmosphere.
Of the 144 schools that were members of the GIA in 1968, only six continued as high schools in 1970 (Atlanta, Macon, Columbus, Augusta, and Savannah schools had jumped to the GHSA between 1966-68 and aren’t included). Of those five, only two remain open as high schools now: Monroe (Albany) and Hancock Central. Montezuma’s D.F. Douglass closed in 1998, Taliaferro County closed in 1982, and Liberty County shut down in 1972. Boggs Academy, a private school, closed because of a lack of funds in 1984.
The remaining 138 were downgraded to elementaries and junior highs. Some, such as Herctoma in Statenville were abandoned entirely. The segregated elementaries generally suffered a worse fate. Even though the majority of the buildings sprang up in the 1950s, most GIA elementaries have either been demolished or left to the elements. I’ve attempting to document as many locations as possible.
The heritage of these schools has been largely ignored. A few high schools made minor changes. Some switched nicknames, such as Crisp County (Rebels to Cougars) and Brooks County (Tigers to Trojans). Berrien incorporated the year of total high school integration into the school’s crest where it stands beside the date the school was opened.
Largely, the schools just moved on. Teachers found themselves scatters. Principals were demoted to either junior high level or let go. Valdosta city schools had a lawsuit when the teachers from Pinevale felt their experience was being ignored.
Not all students were equal in 1970. Unless they were very large, like Washington and Howard of Atlanta, they had to scrounge for whatever they could. Lakeland High & Elementary had a book drive in the late 1950s, begging for any donations for their library. At least they had a library. In 1963, the state came close to pulling funds from Bleckley County unless they upped the standards of their segregated schools. None had libraries. The rural elementaries were underfunded to the point that they all had outhouses and were in two-room buildings.
Shannon, M.Div.
March 1st, 2010
12:12 am
ScienceTeacher671, when I was in high school, there was a “pep rally” in which the principal made presentations to some students who had excelled academically. For instance, I remember that the star student (highest SAT score in the school) received a bouquet of roses. It was kind of awkward, but also kind of neat. I’m not sure that it did much to change the culture of the school, but it was a nice gesture.
Educator2
March 1st, 2010
12:28 am
In all due respect, the number of blogs you have written is an irrelevant point. The mention of the author being a UGA graduate is also irrelevant. My concern is a post that involves “race” as its core subject or a post that can easily be interpreted to have “race” as its core subject, will reasonable cause “racial” based comments. These comments are most often offense to many of your readers. I do not expect you decide your post using “fear” as a factor but I do challenge you to lead this “open forum format with a sense of insight to all your readers. The control over a “bizarre comment or two” is often unavoidable on an “open forum format”, but the likelihood of “bizarre” comments increase according to the topic selected. Thus, you have the opportunity to lead this “open forum format” through your posting selections. I challenge you to be more thoughtful in your posting selections in an effort to not foster a racial divide.
ScienceTeacher671
March 1st, 2010
5:55 am
In other words, Educator2, you think the blog should avoid any controversial topics involving race, because there are some dolts who post here?
Miquel
March 1st, 2010
6:58 am
Here we are with the, “I didn’t attend an HBCU, and I turned out to be just fine. I work in Corporate America (and I love it) and just look at me.” So, to paraphrase, who needs intergration? It’s people like K.I.M. who really makes my blood boil. There’s no mention of the people who were attacked by dogs, cops and other forms of racial injustices. It’s all about what they achieved. But, she would be the first one to say, “I’m not selfish”.
I would like to say, to the people before me, and the ones before them, both black and white, THANK YOU!!!
Maureen Downey
March 1st, 2010
7:39 am
Educator2, I still disagree. Race remains an issue, in the culture and in the classroom, as do many other controversial education topics that bring out the best and worst in comments. I have quite a canvas to work with each week, no limit on my entries, no limit on public comments. I can’t ignore volatile or divisive topics given that I have all the space in the world to explore them. In fact, on this blog, even the basic issue of public education is controversial with some posters. And opening the door brings in other voices. I have already heard from an African-American teacher who has written her own book about integration and I plan to talk to her. (She is local and that is a factor in writing a Georgia-based blog. It’s a fact of journalism that people like to read about events in their area so I am responsive to national issues with a Georgia connection.)
Maureen
Lee
March 1st, 2010
7:50 am
@Educator2, re: “…a intellectual dialogue would never occur on this topic due to the racist agenda of some to post their IQ theories, etc at every opportunity regardless of the subject.”
I would love an “intellectual dialogue” about IQ and race and the effects it has on the educational process. However, the moment someone says that whites have a higher IQ than blacks, the cries of racism start – just as you did above.
Many posters on this blog talk about the socio-economic factors and the impact they have on the educational process. However, they fail to recognize the correlation between IQ and poverty – i.e., a person with an IQ of 120 will have a greater earnings potential than a person with an IQ of 85.
In response to your statement above, I would say that an honest dialogue will never occur on this topic due to the politically correct who try to silence those who disagree with them. “Racist” is such an overused word nowadays, it has lost it’s meaning.
Chris Murphy, Atlanta, GA
March 1st, 2010
8:41 am
ScienceTeacher671
February 28th, 2010
9:48 am
It is true that both black and white academic achievers have often been ridiculed and teased by their less-achieving classmates. Perhaps, at least in Georgia, this goes back to a culture which largely denigrates education.
Yes, but we’re damn proud of the football teams and players, aren’t we? And how many books, or teachers, or supplies could be financed with the money proposed for artificial turf? Just what the heck is important in this state? (Sorry for the rhetorical question, I know some won’t understand where I’m coming from. And yes, I know that the Cobb money for stadiums is a separate bond issue; but if they could find the money for turf, why can they not find it for academic resources?)
Bremen City Conservative
March 1st, 2010
8:46 am
“Racist” is such an overused word nowadays, it has lost it’s meaning.
Amen!
south ga teacher
March 1st, 2010
9:59 am
So…whats the point? re-segregate? What exactly are we supposed to do with this information? It doesn’t matter the color or your skin. Until parents value education, schools, and teachers their kids won’t.
Maureen Downey
March 1st, 2010
10:22 am
south ga teacher, I think the author’s point was that education research fails to consider what the kids bring to the table. He wants to explore why black students may not value education excellence. His book does not have a lot of remedies, but he does think that there needs to be a movement within schools and communities that raises the profile and value of doing well in school.
Maureen
(I invited Stuart Buck to respond to some of these blog comments. He has been reading the comments, so maybe you will get a response from him directly.)
Senior
March 1st, 2010
11:56 am
As Maureen states, race remains a factor; particularly in the structure of Southern educational systems. A child of any race, given an excellent educational setting, can excel at the highest secondary levels; the foregoing can be substantiated by the fact that Stanford University—one of the two most selective universities in the country—has been majority-minority for more than a decade.
Other (than the typical Southern) schools worked throughout “black educational history.” However, many excellent black schools (in the North) were decimated as middle class blacks, upwardly mobile through affirmative action and the lessening of defacto barriers, left their less-prepared neighbors. The result was the socalled creation of a highly concentrated “underclass.” Neighborhood schools in these “ghettos” disintegrated as a result.
I can witness good black schools in days past. I was one of only seven white kids (1960) in an otherwise all black high school of ~1000 students. Many of my black classmates went on to be doctors, lawyers, businessmen, and politicians. The best teacher I ever had was a black male (English teacher) who was one of the many black male teachers/role models on the teaching staff. [It's relatively rare to find a black male teaching a core subject in many of our Southern high schools.]
Another major difference between the then-now culture of the school was the relative priority of athletics; academics was the priority then, athletics are a vehicle of exploitation today. [How else can we explain that the GHSAA rules permit the "student-athlete" to remain eligible if he never passes a math or English class during 4 years of high school.] That is not to say that athletics weren’t important in the old days; in a remarkable display of talent, the entire football backfield of my sophomore class went on to play pro football—they also graduated from college because of academic preparation of high school solidified by the carrot-stick approach of demanding success in the classroom to remain eligibilty (no failing grades) for football.
I sense that I’m rambling. The point I intended to make: kids of any race can be academically successful in an environment structured for success. That structure doesn’t exist in modern Southern schools.
art vandalay
March 1st, 2010
2:32 pm
as a 37 yr old white southerner, i have always been perplexed be the ability of blacks to self-segregate. it seem to be more prevalent in their culture rather than any i have been exposed too. we should all be proud of our race, ethnicity, gender, culture, etc. growing up with a military father, i was exposed to a variety of races and cultures. i know it was a very small taste, but anyone who has lived on a military base understands the familiarity gained through the close proximity of base living. so many things seem to be threatening to the black culture. how can you ostracize someone for speaking proper english, getting involved in academic achievement, attemting to better themselves. however, that cycle continues to perpetuate itself. it seems that a majority of the black community only respects those who have “made it” with success in hip-hop or athletics. i know for many blacks, even president obama is “too white”. you lose “street cred” for having a neutral accent, conservaive attire, or god-forbid, an education. many would ridicule tiger woods as too white, but those same people would be the first to stand up and shout in his behalf as another example of a black man who “rules his sport”. even the rev. commented that woods’ biggest failure in so sorted affairs was not having affairs with black women so they too could profit off the media attention. i know i paint with a broad brush, but it seems to me that latinos and asians continue to excel through the opportunities given to them in this great country of ours. we still hve a ways to go, but many minority communities continue to flourish, while the southwest atlantas of the world continue to decompose while playing the race card and diligently using racial injustice as their crutch that forever remains in their corner if necessary. i believe you can preserve racial identity while still moving forward.
Hakim
March 1st, 2010
3:55 pm
@NoBama2012 – President Obama refers to himself as African American. He has a European American mother and an African father. In fact, President Obama may have more African DNA than many African Americans whose African ancestry was generations ago.
Obama’s life story and heritage are also essential parts of his political appeal. His racial background, as the son of a Kenyan father and a white mother from Kansas, not only helps him relate to a wide variety of people, it has even become a personification of some with hopes that the United States can move beyond its racial divide.
President Obama often describes his struggles as a child who was intellectually gifted and often not accepted due to his racial heritage. This blog is quite representative of the type of challenges many African American youth experience when aspiring towards academic achievement.
Media Coverage « Stuart Buck
March 1st, 2010
4:07 pm
[...] Media Coverage The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s education reporter Maureen Downey interviewed me last week, and the result is a well-written column and blog post. [...]
Mike S
March 1st, 2010
6:46 pm
Lee – you Rock! Amazig how many people who “Celebrate Diversity” see it as a win-win game – never seem to click on how equality is only a political construct! Could 40,000 years of evolution only show itself in skin color and hair quality?
Mike S
March 1st, 2010
6:56 pm
Postad on Buck’s Brag Site:
I read the AJC post. I think you are a twit. By adopting children which you could never produce yourself, you are negating the validity of their cultural heritage. How are you any different than the white slave masters of 160 years ago, other than your self serving concept of benevolence? They, too, offered proof of raising the black man from his benighted circumstances, they too equated materialism as the true meaning of life.
By placing black children in a position to either choose to adhere to their own culture’s rules, or adopt the ways of the white man to achieve “success” – you have sold souls that were not yours to sell.
Meet the enemy – he is you.
Bigboy
March 1st, 2010
9:36 pm
We are in the year 2010 and still talking about “white” and “black” instead of AMERICANS.Did any of you know that the whole idea of calling yourself “white” or “black” originated in the 13 colonies?Never before in recorded history did a man identify himself by his skin color… it’s old tired and the reason racial crap is still perpetrated.Prior to coming to the states people identified with their homeland not their race.
Bigboy
March 1st, 2010
9:43 pm
As for African Americans I would say the civil rights act was robbed of it’s intended effect by the inclusion of white females to the coverage.If this would have been limited to Black descendants of slaves only it may have had a much more profound economic impact on the Black community.As it is White females have been the biggest benefactors of the civil rights legislation..Ironic but true….there are more white females in America than there are Black people period.Amazing
Bigboy
March 1st, 2010
9:59 pm
As a matter of fact White females are the largest group of ANY people in the United States.Yet they were included in legislation that was intended to SOMEWHAT temper the long lasting effects of racial slavery and economic depredation.You have to admit it was a rather brilliant move…Take something intended to help a group of citizens who were victimized by a system designed to exploit their labor and give a lionshare of those intended safeguards to the largest segment of the racial group who benefited( directly or indirectly)from the denial of equal rights to that group.Simply brilliant…Machiavellian even!
sipp
March 2nd, 2010
8:55 am
This article is a reality. It’s noted in homes, schools, churches and the overall community. For many, it is acceptable to be ignorant and illiterate. Sad and tragic, but true.
What a Joke
March 2nd, 2010
4:25 pm
Wow, these posts on here are unbelievable! No wonder people around the world think Southerners are ignorant.
And Maureen, I know about the first ammendment and everything but this was nothing but a way to get the “switchboard” lit up.
I am white, I am a native Georgian, I am a Generation Xer, and I am a teacher. It saddens me to read posts like the ones left by Lee and Hank Williams Jr. and others.
I was raised in poor rural Georgia by great parents who taught us about MLK’s words and doing unto others as you would have them…
You have the right to voice your opinion like everyone else, but it’s just so disappointing to see THAT kind of ignorance being vagrantly touted by white people as a sound theory on life in general.
What a Joke
March 2nd, 2010
4:29 pm
I meant “flagrantly” not “vagrantly.” I do know how to spell most of the time…
Ole Guy
March 2nd, 2010
8:29 pm
Alecia, your observations on the abuse of the English language in the name of racial harmony speak volumns. Just as historys have been re-writen to appease the wrongs of our fathers …just as the so-called ebonics lingo has been sanctified as legitimate…we tend to “allow” these abuses of language and heritage simply because we strain at our feeble efforts in teaching diversity. Rather than telling the kid “YOU ARE WRONG…SAY IT RIGHT”, we allow our fears to overwhelm our better judgements.
Ole Guy
March 2nd, 2010
8:37 pm
And Joke…don’t sweat the small stuff. Nothing pisses me off more than these pinheads who concentrate their replys on such superflous issues. I think most readers are somewhat “on the ball”, as it were, to be able to assimilate your intent, mis-spellings not withstanding. For those who would rather correct spelling, than participate in the topic of discussion, my suggestions as to what they can do would surely place me on any black list of religous acceptability. Continue the march, Joke.
‘Acting white’ « Joanne Jacobs
May 25th, 2010
6:40 am
[...] of Arkansas. As the white adoptive parent of two black children, he chose to focus on the pressures faced by high-achieving minority students, he told Maureen Downey of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Once reassigned to desegregated [...]