“It became the symbolic way to talk the Trayvon Martin case. It’s rare that you get one artifact that really becomes the symbol,” Lonnie Bunch, director of Smithsonian’s National Museum of African-American History
Trayvon's hoodie and this case in particular may not be equivalent to, but reminds me of Rosa Parks arrest in the Civil Rights Movement of the 60's in that this is definitely not the first time this has happened, but it has garnered enough attention from the national media to cause a definite buzz.
Some people like to believe we live in a post race society and that racism is dead; unfortunately, racism is not dead. I do not advocate overreacting or scaring our kids or making them overly sensitive or teaching them that our entire identity is based on victimization...we have to tell them the truth.
In an article I ran across today, the author shared 5 of the rules he received when he got "the talk" from his parents:
Never Leave A Store Without A Shopping Bag
Never Loiter Outside, Anywhere
Never Go Anywhere Alone
Never Talk Back To Police ... And Never, Ever Reach Into Your Pocket
"One of the things that black parents have done, and rather successfully...is on the one hand talk about a sense of being aware — being cautious — while also avoiding what we call destructive paranoia."
What do you think??? Is this really a big deal??? Some people may say this is overkill, but the fact remains that there are still some people in the world, in this country, that will see your son and only see what they perceive to be their stereotyped black kid. It is sad, but it is true. But why should this STILL be an issue? I mean, we are living in 2013 and there is no need for civil rights for African-Americans anymore, right??? Well, as Harry Belafonte said in an interview on Monday:
"in the 50's.. everything was quite visible, now all this is underground, you go through so much fighting these 'ghosts'"
Harry Belafonte
Check out the full interview on another blog here:
"Some things he's done, it may not have been called 'black'. But it affected us." Rev. Al Sharpton
Whenever I see a headline referring to the idea that President Obama has not done enough for Black Americans, there are so many things that come to mind. This article hits on some main points of both sides of the argument: http://m.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/04/has-president-obama-done-enough-for-black-americans/274699/
"Our study provides empirical evidence that the longstanding practice in the African American community of cultivating racial pride and preparing children to face racial bias in society should be considered among appropriate and beneficial practices in parenting Black children" Ming-Te Wang
I've been working on leadership development curriculum that includes identity development, specifically racial identity development in youth. As a precursor to this, I plan to launch a racial identity series here on this blog in the spring.
Interesting enough, I ran across an article today online published on medicalxpress.com, "Can instilling racial pride in black teens lead to better educational outcomes?" The article talks about a University of Pittsburgh study published this fall in the journal Child Development. Titled "Parental Racial Socialization as a Moderator of the Effects of Racial Discrimination on Educational Success Among African American Adolescents," the research article shows that when African American parents use racial socialization—talking to their children or engaging in activities that promote feelings of racial knowledge, pride, and connection—it offsets racial discrimination's potentially negative impact on students' academic development. They plan to carry out the same study among Latino and Asian communities as well. Read the entire article here: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-instilling-racial-pride-black-teens.html
"to MY peers people of color in MY generation, blood sweat and tears have been shed for us to obtain any goals which we have set for our set for ourselves...never be afraid to excel and achieve...we are free to learn..."
I came across this story of 13 year old Miss Jada Williams who read The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass over the Christmas break and submitted an essay for a contest. The Frederick Douglass Foundation contacted Jada and honored her with the Spirit of Freedom award, saying that her essay "actually demonstrates that she understood the autobiography. On her award are the words, "21st Century Abolitionist". But it seems not everyone was so impressed:
"In a bold comparative analysis of The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Jada Williams, a 13-year old eighth grader at School #3 in Rochester, New York, asserted that in her experience, today's education system is a modern-day version of slavery. According to the Fredrick Douglass Foundation of New York, the schools' teachers and administrators were so offended by Williams' essay that they began a campaign of harassment—kicking her out of class and trying to suspend her—that ultimately forced her parents to withdraw her from the school." Read the entire story.
Watch Jada recite her essay:
Williams' parents say other teachers began to single out their daughter, a problem that a series of meetings failed to address. They requested a transfer from School #3 and the District switched her to School #19. On February 6, her first day at the new school, Williams said she witnessed several fights and didn't feel comfortable going back. Tuesday was her first day attending School #19 in nearly a month. She did not go back Wednesday. Williams feels expressing her opinion about the Frederick Douglass book has ruined her life. Fighting back tears, she said,
"I love to go to school and I feel like they're taking that away from me."
Williams' mother said this controversy is not about race, but about her daughter's ability to express her thoughts freely. Her essay was recently acknowledged by the Frederick Douglass Foundation of New York, which awarded the 13-year-old its first-ever Spirit of Freedom Award on February 18. Read more....http://rochesterhomepage.net/fulltext?nxd_id=303562
The Superintendent finally called to apologize Friday night, March 2. Is this enough?
Please contact Rochester Superintendent of Public Schools Vargas Bolgen at bolgen.vargas@rcsdk12.org or call (585) 262-8100 to voice your concerns about Ms. Jada Williams being force out of school because she wants her classmates to learn.
