Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Went with my journalist friend Soren to conduct an interview at an afrocentric elementary school in Woodlawn.
I think what they're doing at the school is awesome. Helping the kids become familiar with and proud of their culture and history. Their test scores have been improving faster than those of any other Chicago public school. Undoubtedly, this is because the kids feel secure and welcome in their learning environment.

However, the woman we interviewed said one thing that I wholeheartedly do NOT agree with. She said, "Black people can't be racist." And before my jaw could drop, Soren asked in his gentle way, "How so?" And she said that racism is, "when white people use their privilege to deny black people jobs and other rights" and since black people don't have "privilege", they can't be racist.

I wanted to ask: What if there was a teaching job open at your school? A highly qualified candidate comes in to apply. She is friendly, has excellent references, experience teaching at urban schools and an interest in African culture. But she is white.
You have the "privilege" now. Would you hire her?

(I suspect not.)

Or maybe I just don't and can't understand.

posted at 9:09 PM |