Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is wrapping up a tour of state school systems around the country. A blog post on the Atlanta Journal Constitution website says that a big topic of discussion when the secretary visited Grady High School in midtown Atlanta was race.According to the students Duncan met with, Grady’s student body, which is 67 percent African-American, is pre-segregated before a class ever matriculates to high school. A number of reasons cause this, starting with the fact that students come from elementary schools and middle schools in neighborhoods that are less diverse demographically than Grady is. These students form social groups as children that are often preserved into adolescence. Additionally, the grouping of students into merit-based tracks seems to exacerbate the issue.Apparently, the incidental separation continues into high school where Grady students who bring their own lunch (more often then not white, middle-class kids) are instructed to sit in one area of the cafeteria, whereas those who buy school lunches sit elsewhere. I am sure that system is in place to ease traffic flow, but it’s hard to imagine someone didn’t see the unintended consequences.Either way, I think these kids have a point-and it’s not just because I’m from Atlanta. What do you think?Photo of Grady High School’s Student Government Association via
Tags
advertisement
More for You
-
14 images of badass women who destroyed stereotypes and inspired future generations
These trailblazers redefined what a woman could be.
Throughout history, women have stood up and fought to break down barriers imposed on them from stereotypes and societal expectations. The trailblazers in these photos made history and redefined what a woman could be. In doing so, they paved the way for future generations to stand up and continue to fight for equality.
-
Why mass shootings spawn conspiracy theories
Mass shootings and conspiracy theories have a long history.
While conspiracy theories are not limited to any topic, there is one type of event that seems particularly likely to spark them: mass shootings, typically defined as attacks in which a shooter kills at least four other people.
When one person kills many others in a single incident, particularly when it seems random, people naturally seek out answers for why the tragedy happened. After all, if a mass shooting is random, anyone can be a target.
Pointing to some nefarious plan by a powerful group – such as the government – can be more comforting than the idea that the attack was the result of a disturbed or mentally ill individual who obtained a firearm legally.
advertisement

