Change Your World Week Winter 2021 (Archived)

Brown vs. Board (1954) is considered to be a landmark case in the fight for Civil Rights in America. It's main purpose was to desegregate education by proving that even though segregation was legal, it was detrimental to children of color and therefore not equal. This process was an attempt to reverse the results of the Plessy vs. Ferguson (1896) case which upheld constitutional segregation in public place as long there were "separate but equal" places (Martin, 2020). The Supreme Court ruling officially declared segregation in education unconstitutional!

When discussing race, it is also important to talk about class and how they play off each other. Today, while schools are more racially segregated than they were when segregation was legal, the divides we see today are class-divides (Barshay, 2020). People of color are disproportionately represented in the working-class and those who live at or below the poverty line, therefore they are at a greater risk of attending schools with lower funding.

Schools are funded primarily through property taxes, and lower-class neighborhoods harbor lower-class schools as a result (Barshay, 2020). According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 45% of Hispanic students, 44% of black students, and 38% of Native American students attend high-poverty schools as of 2016, which are defined as schools in which 75% or more students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch (FRPL). The percentage of white students attending high-poverty schools sits at 8% (McFarland et al, 2019). While class-divides are now the calling card for inequality, we must not overlook who is represented within these classes, as people of color are more likely to live in lower-class areas and work lower-class jobs.

When schools face budget problems, the first thing to go is extracurricular activities such as clubs, art and music classes, and sports. Some schools may choose to keep these activities but make them pay-to-play expenditures. This is a huge problem for working-class families that cannot afford extra expenses. Programs like these are fundamental to a child’s learning process, as they help to foster leadership, problem-solving, teamwork, and relationship-building skills. These soft skills are oftentimes essential to acceptance into higher education and the job market (Snellman et al,2015).

After-school activities are also crucial in keeping children safe. Kids who attend lower-class schools often live in areas where it may be unsafe to be outside. They may even turn to gangs because this is where they are spending their time. This can mean negative outcomes in the short and long-term. These soft skills are one of the best indicators for predicting both educational and income attainment 10 years down the line. When collecting resumes from teachers in low-income areas, psychologists Claire Robertson-Kraft and Angela Duckworth rated them based on passion and perseverance in college activities. They found that the teachers with the highest scores were in turn better teachers and tended to stay at their jobs longer. SAT scores and college GPAs were not good indicators of a teachers success, pointing towards involvement in extracurriculars as a means for upward mobility (Snellman et al, 2015).

In the article Inequity Outside the Classroom: Growing Class Differences in Participation in Extracurricular Activities by Kaisa Snellman, Jennifer M. Silva, and Robert D. Putnam, they outline three distinctively different students, age 18, who all have a unique home life. After reading summaries of their experiences, think about what factors come into play when determining life outcomes.

                              Ethan

• Lives in private housing development with family while attending an elite university.
• Member of the Eagle Scouts.
• Participates in multiple sports.
• Plays multiple instruments.
• Parents have free time to spend with him.

                              Nicole

• Works in a kitchen at a hotel.
• Working-class parents who had little extra time and money.
• Was on the school dance team, but had to quit due to the $800 price tag.
• Got pregnant and moved in with boyfriend.
• Currently living on her own with her child, and taking a medical billing class at a local college.

                              Carlos

• By middle school was already in a gang.
• Inspired by an adult in the community who was taking college courses while raising three kids.
• Went to summer school to retake classes.
• Started taking martial arts classes, which he paid for by washing his coach’s car.
• Joined the school wrestling team and now wrestles in college. 

What they all have in common is mentorship, or lack thereof. Ethan has mentors such as his parents, extended family, and the many relationships he has been able to build with adults due to his involvement in extracurricular activities. Nicole, by contrast, did not have strong mentorship in her life. Her parents were unable to spend quality time with her, and despite a want to be on the dance team, her family simply could not afford for her participation. Carlos, while lacking in early life of a mentor, found some later in life. These people inspired him to make better decisions for himself, turning his life in a different direction.

Many poor children, disproportionately children of color, do not have the opportunity or means to participate in those activities that can not only foster soft skills, but provide them with an adult role model. The Boys and Girls Clubs of America is one organization that seeks to bridge this divide, with membership fees at only $5 per year. They offer mentors in the form of trained volunteers, as well as offering a safe space for children to build a sense of competence, belonging, and usefulness. As they are a nonprofit organization, they rely on donations to continue to offer these amazing services.

If you would like to make a donation of any size, visit the Boys and Girls Clubs of America website!

Affirmative Action is an often misunderstood term. In fact, many people have called for its abolition in the United States claiming that it is unfair to white folk who suffer from the same financial and economic hardships that non-white people do. So why should minorities be offered special treatment? Well, affirmative action does not mean special treatment. It refers to the "collection of policies and practices designed to address  past wrongs, institutional racism, and sexism by offering people of color and women both employment and educational opportunities." (Desmond & Emirbayer, p. 146) In essence, its an attempt to reverse the societal domination of the white patriarchy that has been the staple since the founding of the United States. It helps by making sure women and people of color who have equal if not higher qualifications than their competition, get a chance at a better job and/or college degree. If your interested in helping show support for affirmative action in today's society, take a look at the petition below and consider signing!

Show your support by signing this petition!

Barshay, Jill. “A Decade of Research on Education Inequality in America.” The Hechinger Report, The Hechinger Report, 29 June 2020, hechingerreport.org/a-decade-of-research-on-the-rich-poor-divide-in-education/.

Desmond, M., & Emirbayer, M. (2020). Race in America (2nd ed.). New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company.

Martin, J. L., & Brooks, J. N. (2020). Turning White: Co-Opting a Profession through the Myth of Progress, an Intersectional Historical Perspective of “Brown v. Board of Education.” Educational Considerations, 45(2)

McFarland, J., Hussar, B., Zhang, J., Wang, X., Wang, K., Hein, S., Diliberti, M., Forrest Cataldi, E., Bullock Mann, F., and Barmer, A. (2019). The Condition of Education 2019 (NCES 2019-144). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved April 11, 2021 from https://nces.ed.gov/ pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2019144.

Snellman, Kaisa, et al. “Inequity Outside the Classroom: Growing Class Differences in Participation in Extracurricular Activities.” Inequity Outside the Classroom: Growing Class Differences in Participation in Extracurricular Activities | Voices in Urban Education, 2015, vue.annenberginstitute.org/issues/40/inequity-outside-classroom-growing-class-differences-participation-extracurricular.