My junior year of college I took a course that examined the sociology of race and the law taught by two erudite and critical female professors. In a school full of very wealthy and very white individuals, my far more humble upbringing and extremely liberal raising made me feel pretty comfortable examining issues of racial disparity. Most of the topics were things that I could easily view through a critical lens while not making me feel particularly vulnerable even as a white woman; after all, I had liberal academics of parents who had taught me that racism was wrong.
Then came the point of the course in which we studied education. My professors introduced us to the issue of de facto segregation and white flight. Immediately I felt the little hairs of protectiveness flair up on the back of my neck. We were no longer talking about some abstract version of racism—we were talking about me and my family and how the choices that we had made had contributed to resegregation of schools. Feeling a profound sense of guilt and confusion, my identity as a progressive “good guy” white woman had …show more content…
The following year I began my senior thesis on the impact of desegregation on the achievement gap. My research examined multiple regions’ attempts to desegregate in response to the courts’ orders. An inspection of cities in central Florida as well as Boston and Buffalo suggested that not all attempts to desegregate were done the same way—some cities forced busing across town, while others built increased consensus and worked with less rigid geographical boarders. The ultimate result was that how a city desegregated impacted the overall buy-in and success of the process. Moreover, cities and schools that were able to successfully desegregate showed increased student achievement for all students. In short, when schools were integrated, all students
Then came the point of the course in which we studied education. My professors introduced us to the issue of de facto segregation and white flight. Immediately I felt the little hairs of protectiveness flair up on the back of my neck. We were no longer talking about some abstract version of racism—we were talking about me and my family and how the choices that we had made had contributed to resegregation of schools. Feeling a profound sense of guilt and confusion, my identity as a progressive “good guy” white woman had …show more content…
The following year I began my senior thesis on the impact of desegregation on the achievement gap. My research examined multiple regions’ attempts to desegregate in response to the courts’ orders. An inspection of cities in central Florida as well as Boston and Buffalo suggested that not all attempts to desegregate were done the same way—some cities forced busing across town, while others built increased consensus and worked with less rigid geographical boarders. The ultimate result was that how a city desegregated impacted the overall buy-in and success of the process. Moreover, cities and schools that were able to successfully desegregate showed increased student achievement for all students. In short, when schools were integrated, all students