50 Years Later: Black, White and Brown – Talking Points

“THE AFRICAN AMERICAN STRUGGLE for desegregation did not arise because anyone believed that there was something magical about sitting next to whites in a classroom. It was, however, based on a belief that the dominant group would keep control of the most successful schools and that the only way to get full range of opportunities for a minority child was to get access to those schools.” –Gary Orfield, The Civil Rights Project at Harvard University

What the Supreme Court Decided on May 17, 1954 :

(full text at www.nea.org/brownvboard/ )

Separate is inherently unequal.

The Court wrote: “We conclude that in the field of public education, the doctrine of ‘separate but equal’ has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.”

Learning is hurt by segregation, racism, stereotypes, or reduced student achievement expectations.

The Court found that the evils of racial segregation affected students’ motivation and retarded educational and mental development.

The 2003 case of Grutter v. University of Michigan upheld the use of race in student law school admissions. Justice O’Connor restated the educational need to negate stereotypes:

“. . . diminishing the force of such stereotypes is both a crucial part of the Law School’s mission, and one that it cannot accomplish with only token numbers of minority students. Just as growing up in a particular region or having particular professional experiences is likely to affect an individual’s views, so too is one’s own, unique experience of being a racial minority in a society, like our own, in which race unfortunately still matters.”

Public education is an important government function.

The Court wrote: “Today, education is perhaps the most important function of state and local government… It is required in the performance of our most basic public responsibilities…. It is the very foundation of good citizenship. Today it is a principal instrument in awakening the child to cultural values, in preparing him for later professional training, and in helping him to adjust normally to his environment.”

Education is a right, not a privilege.

The Court wrote: “In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be expected to succeed in life if he (or she) s denied the opportunity of an education. Such an opportunity, where the state has undertaken to provide it, is a right which must be made available to all on equal terms.”

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After the Decision –

· The decision was met with massive resistance, including: closing public schools to thousands of students; the use of public funds in the form of vouchers allowed white students to attend all white private schools, and in some instances U.S. troops had to be called in to escort students into newly desegregated schools through mobs of white protestors and National Guardsmen.

· More than 38,000 black educators in 17 states lost jobs between 1954 and 1965. Dr. Mildred Hudson of Recruiting New Teachers attributes losses to school closings and student/faculty integration.

· By the 1970s the South had become the nation's most integrated region. In 1976, 45.1 percent of the South's African American students were attending majority white schools, compared with just 27.5 percent in the Northeast and 29.7 percent in the Midwest.

Continuing Desegregation Litigation –

· The Alabama Education Association and NEA supported litigation in Lee v. Macon is still under judicial review with court action ongoing. This complex desegregation case found disproportionately high numbers of African American students placed in special education -- supposedly reserved for physically or mentally challenged students with special needs. Disproportionately low numbers of African American students were in the state's gifted/talented programs.

· Brown’s legal arguments are being heard in the Kentucky case of McFarland, et al. v. Jefferson County Public Schools. At issue is whether a school district can use race to establish integrated learning environments and avoid racial isolation of its students. County schools operate on a “ managed choice” system that considers the following factors in making students’ school assignments: parent/student preference, student needs, school programs, school building size and capacity, and educational mission of the school district. Prior to “managed choice,” district schools operated under a 25-year old desegregation plan. The plan was dissolved when a court declared the school district was sufficiently integrated.

· In Sheff v. O'Neill, advocates for minority students in Hartford contended that racial segregation violated the Connecticut Constitution's segregation clause, and that they were entitled to a remedy that included integrating the suburbs as well as the city. In 1996, the Connecticut Supreme Court agreed. Last January, the parties settled: a $245 million integration plan will create a racially mixed setting -- in regular classrooms, after school programs and summer school -- for about 30 percent of Hartford students.

Sliding Backwards: Resegregation –

· Before they're even born, poor and minority children risk doing poorly in school. Contributing factors include: rigorous curriculum, teacher preparation/experience/attendance, class size, technology-assisted instruction, school safety, parent participation, student mobility, birth weight, lead poising, nutrition. In addition, far more minorities are placed in remedial courses. In 1994, 31% of black, 24% of Hispanic, and 35% of American Indian high school graduates took remedial courses, compared to 15% of whites and Asians.

· In New York City, per pupil spending ($10,500) remains half that of the rich Long Island suburb of Manhasset, where some $21,000 is invested yearly in each child's education. (Jonathan Kozol, “Beyond Black White and Brown,” The Nation 5/3/04)

Brown: Not JUST Black and White anymore –

· With continuing immigration, especially from Spanish-speaking and Asian countries, the issue of equal educational opportunity for non-English-speaking students remains increasingly central.

· In U.S. v. Texas (San Felipe Del Rio), the federal government sought to desegregate two neighboring school districts, one predominantly white and the other overwhelmingly Latino. In ordering the consolidation of the two districts, the district judge found that English language and cultural barriers precluded the successful integration of Latino students and that addressing the language limitations of both Anglo and Latino students was therefore an appropriate desegregation device. He ordered bilingual education for all students in the newly consolidated district.

· The rights of "Limited English Proficiency" (LEP) students were further enhanced by the Supreme Court's ruling in Lau v. Nichols in 1974. The case involved a class-action suit brought by non-English-speaking Chinese students living in San Francisco, who alleged a violation of Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act because only 1,700 of about 35,000 Chinese students in need of special English instruction were actually receiving it. The Court ruled in favor of Lau that: [basic English skills] are the very core of what these public schools teach. We know that those who do not understand English are certain to find their classroom experiences wholly incomprehensible and in no way meaningful.

· Latinos confront segregation by race and income, and non-English speaking Latinos tend to be segregated in schools with each other. There has been no substantial gain for Latinos even during the civil rights era, and an increase in segregation is particularly notable in the west.

Desegregation in action –

· Topeka, KS: Made famous by the Brown v Board decision has achieved substantial desegregation – in 2001 black students were enrolled in schools that had 51% whites, and Topeka whites were in schools with 44% nonwhites (average) including a rapidly growing share of Latinos.

· Delaware is one of the nations most integrated states for black students behind Kentucky, Washington, Kansas and Nebraska. Rounding out the top ten is Indiana, Oklahoma, Minnesota Colorado and North Carolina.

· Some social and educational advantages of desegregation: minority students are exposed to higher set of educational expectations and career options, students complete more years of school, and black and white students who had cross-race friendships also had higher educational aspirations than those with same only same race friendships. This leads to higher comfort levels with members of different racial groups and a greater sense of civic engagement sand desire to live and work in multiracial settings.

· The Cambridge (Massachusetts) School Committee made a commitment to embrace a socio-economic desegregation plan attempting to preserve racial and ethnic diversity in a time when policies based solely on race may be prohibited. A 2002 survey of the racial and diversity experience of nearly of all 12^th graders in the Cambridge district had interesting results:

· Well over 75% of the seniors responded to the survey, of them 31% identified White, 18% African American, 10% Latino, 14% “other,” 10% multi racial and 4% Asian/

· Almost all students (90%) said they had a high degree of comfort working with people different from themselves in the classroom. Less than half reported a high degree of “encouragement” by teachers to work with students of different racial and ethnic backgrounds.

· In personal statements, students reported feeling “thankful” and “stimulated” by the diverse environment. Others said the diversity “conquered many fears” about those of other races or affirmed their own heritage while teaching them to “respect others.” One immigrant student cited an increased understanding of English, and “different cultures.”

· Over 90% say they feel prepared to live and work among people of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds and comfortable working with a supervisor of a different racial or ethic background than their own.

· Less exciting were the response to the question of whether school counselors encouraged all groups of students to take more demanding classes to prepare students for college. The student response indicated that over 60% of Whites and Asians were encouraged, while less than half of African Americans and Latinos were encouraged to take the honors and AP classes. One student in an AP class remarked “the AP classes lack diversity. The classes that are more diverse are enjoyable and the AP course would be much better with a more diverse group of students.” (The impact of Racial and Ethnic Diversity on Educational Outcomes, Harvard Civil Rights Project, 2002)