Tag: African-American

I Used To Feel So Uninspired

January 28, 2009

Barack Obama makes me feel like a natural woman.  Especially this morning.

I’ve been preaching for years that education funding should not be locally funded.  If our goal in education is to equalize opportunity, it makes no sense to let poor kids in poor areas go to poorly funded schools and rich kids in rich areas go to lavishly funded schools.  (I say this, ruefully, as a child of one of the richest counties in America.  People there were willing and able to tax themselves like crazy to give me a great education.)  This additional federal funding is one more step toward equalizing some shocking gaps.  If it comes with additional federal oversight, I have faith that  it could be worth the annoyance.

And adding funding to Pell Grants?  I can’t imagine a better investment in our country.  Of course we should fund the college education of people with drive and skills but no money!  My fear about educational inequality is that some kid somewhere is born with the brains and creativity to cure cancer, and instead of going to med school, the kid is changing my oil at Jiffy Lube.  (Yes, very honorable work, but inappropriate.) 

Equal opportunity is not about compassion, or fairness, or any touchy-feely stuff like that.  It’s about cultivating the knowledge and talent we have in our country.  We’ve got to build up what we have.  (And incidentally, I don’t think anyone’s going to reject that cancer cure if the lead researcher was an illegal immigrant’s kid.) 

People from all over the world still come to the U.S. seeking education.  The fluidity and creativity cultivated by our educational system are unrivaled.  (To those people who felt stifled by their American education, I have to say: at least you weren’t born in Europe.  Or Asia.  Or Africa.)  The government here doesn’t control your major or your track in high school, and your studies here aren’t all about memorization and obeying authority.  That’s our weakness, but it’s also an incredible strength. 

Americans are a wildly creative bunch.  We might lag in math and science right-and-wrong tests, but we invent things like nobody’s business, gobble up and regurgitate everyone else’s languages, and mix cultures without killing each other a whole lot of the time.  Also, we’re good dancers.  That’s just my opinion.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/28/education/28educ.html?_r=1&hp

Finally, merely because I have been brainwashed to think in threes: does Obama’s election really change anything?  Could having a black president really influence ideas of race in a meaningful way?  If I hadn’t seen these researchers’ theories in action myself, I would think they were silly.  Here’s what they found: the black-white achievement gap disappeared in two sets of tests that was administered before and after Obama’s election.  I know.  It sounds nutty.   Again, touchy-feely, self-esteem worksheet crap.  Still, on my final exams, I always have students (all of mine are African-American) write something positive about themselves before they start the questions.  How silly.  Or maybe not.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/23/education/23gap.html

Post-Inaugural

January 20, 2009

My students were less moved by today’s speech than by the election (as was I).  It was a big moment, but nothing compared to that night. 

They remain deeply concerned about Obama’s safety, suggesting that he is in danger from “all the white people who don’t like blacks.”  I ask them for evidence, and apparently one crazy woman falsely accused Obama supporters of attacking her.  That’s all they got.  I emphasize that all presidents get death threats, and that I haven’t heard anything about Obama being an unusually popular target.  It’s a common thing for these guys to worry about physical safety in situations I expect to be reliably safe.  Every time we go on a college visit, they ask about security right away.  Someone always asks if guns are allowed in the dorms.  Another thing I say again and again is, “College campuses are really safe.  The reason these college shootings get so much attention is that they are RARE.” 

We had some nice discussion provoked by the kid who says, “Why you like Obama?  Just cause he’s black?”  And by another kid who says, “Every president is great at first, but then people start to get mad at them.” 

All of them are choosing a quality that they share with Obama and signing their name underneath it.  Then they write and draw a little about this quality, so we can display them around the room.  The qualities are: raised by a single parent, in need of scholarships, inspired by Shakespeare, faith in the United States, able to overcome obstacles, religious, diverse background.  I do solemnly swear to promise to look at these names, and these qualities, next time I want to kill one of them.

Hot off the presses: urban youth react to Obama victory

November 5, 2008

I am glad to report that many of our students here (all African-American) are pretty psyched about the Obama victory, and have been writing in class about how this changes their idea of themselves and their futures.  One of the boys said he cried.  Another said his dumb grandma went downstairs to honk the horn on her car. 

One wrote, “People in other countries believe that America is once again the land of opportunity, that really, you can do anything, with hard work and dedication.  I mean, I’m no ignorant person, but I didn’t see America letting a black man win the presidential election.  I am only 17 years old, and I didn’t think I would live long enough to see a real life black president.  But in all honesty, I thank God.  We needed this.”

Still, they maintain their usual annoying teenage whining, annoyance, and misbehavior, so I know the world hasn’t totally flipped on its axis.  We kept up our cranky struggle for power, teacher/student wise.  That’s reassuring.