-
Black Folks Don’t Need Education Reform; We Need a System We Can Call Our Own
The scant mention of Democrats’ official platform on K-12 education on the main stage at the Democratic National Convention last week was clearly a political effort to distance the party from the fray. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has backed off many hallmarks of the accountability era that started with the passage of No Child Left…
-
Where Education Reform and Sexism Collide: Firing Female Teachers and Expelling Black Girls Props Up Patriarchy
Editor’s note: Once a month, this column will tackle broader questions about what the country should do about gaps in achievement and opportunity. Tucked away from the hoopla and ruckus of the Democratic National Convention at a quaint restaurant a few miles away, approximately 200 people gathered at a fundraiser for Rights4Girls to rally around…
-
Democratic Political Infighting Over Education Harms Black Families
The Democrats’ political machine is in full gear this summer as special interest groups drive toward a common goal: getting the party elected to the highest office in the land. But the political action group Democrats for Education Reform, which favors charter schools, has veered off the road, blasting negotiators who altered part of the…
-
Lessons From La. State: Let Students Lead the Way in Protests Over Police Killings
Baton Rouge, La., Thursday, July 7: The perspiring temperatures outdoors were outdone by the racial climate created by years of police killings. Indoors, the climate was slightly less heated as hundreds of college students and community members crammed into the African American Cultural Center and the adjacent Women’s Center on the campus of the Louisiana…
-
Stop Punishing Black Children Just Because They’re Black
Editor’s note: Once a month, this column will tackle broader questions about what the country should do about gaps in achievement and opportunity, especially for boys of color. Schools should be held to higher standards than students. If schools irresponsibly impose discipline practices, then those rules (or leaders) should be expelled. However, when it comes to…
-
Black Aesthetic, White Supremacy: Steve Perry’s Tweet Needs Cutting More Than Black Boys’ Hair
Furious responses to educator Steve Perry’s tweet last week regarding Steve Harvey’s National Mentoring Camp for Young Men is a healthy sign that black people won’t accept self-loathing as a viable solution for underachievement. Perry, who founded the all-male Capital Preparatory Magnet School in Hartford, Conn., recently announced a partnership with hip-hip mogul Sean “Puffy” Combs…
-
The #Pulse Shooting: Can Educating the Public Keep LGBTQ Youths Safe?
It is eerily prescient that just two days before Sunday’s terror attack at Pulse nightclub—a popular spot for the LGBTQ community in Orlando, Fla.—black lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, sexually questioning and queer young adults gathered in Washington, D.C., for the first Summit on African American LGBTQ Youth. In light of the horrifying attack, the urgency…
-
Why More Black Male Teachers Should be Feminists
Editor’s note: Once a month, this column will tackle broader questions about what the country should do about gaps in achievement and opportunity, especially for boys of color. I recently attended an all-black, all-male meeting focused on increasing the number of black men in teaching. It’s an accomplishment and a novelty to see a group…
-
Black and Brown Boys Don’t Need to Learn Grit; They Need Schools to Stop Being Racist
Editor’s note: Once a month, this column will tackle broader questions about what the country should do about gaps in achievement and opportunity, especially for boys of color. Everyone seems to think that a lack of soft skills is the reason students of color aren’t ready for college and careers. More schools and after-school programs…
