Race-based schools. Last thing we need.

Yet another article from the Vancouver Sun. On the issue of racism! Pardon me if your credibility is massively lacking, bliter.

Please take a look at
[url=http://www.rabble.ca/babble/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=38&t=000614&p... thread[/url] which gets into the issue, (in three posts!) in a deeper and more significant way than the racist idiot journalist who wrote your linked story, bliter.

From the thread I linked to:

quote:

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BCG: Yes it's about culture and lack of representation, but it's also about blatant racism. Unaddressed violence against black students, racism in the classroom from other students, teachers who are not skilled to address and challenge racism in the classroom, racism from teachers, both passive and overt, assumptions, such as streaming, which isn't supposed to happen anymore but still does. (This is when Black and other marginalized students are streamed into the "tech" and "vocational" schools regardless of ability and skill level. When Black students are actively discouraged from applying to university, and from taking university "prep" courses.)

I know many teachers in the TDSB, I know Black parents who struggle with these issues with their children, I know people who used to work in the Equity Department of the TDSB.

The "Zero tolerance" policy, also known as the "three strikes you're out" policy has been applied overwhelmingly against black students. And once you're kicked out of one school, finding a new school, catching up, connecting in a new school, all become barriers to success.

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And from [url=http://www.rabble.ca/babble/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=38&t=000613&p=] yet another thread on the issue[/url]

quote:

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BCG: Black parents, educators and activists have been arguing for DECADES about high drop out/attrition rates, also known as "pushed out" rates of Black students. The rates are appalling. What substantial changes have happened in 40, 50 years? At the curriculum level? At the teacher recruitment level? At the anti-racism training level? At the administrative level? At the board level?

Sweet Fuck All.

This "school" will likely consist of less than 100 students and will likely be housed within the physical building of a "regular" public school. City School, Oasis, Ursula Franklin, are all examples of alternative-type schools that exist in the TDSB already (that's the public system folks!), all of them housed within a larger school. Maybe Oasis was above a store on Bloor Street at one point, I'm not sure about that.

The multiple needs for this school, specifically this school, have already been said and I won't repeat all that here. No, not a school for Chinese kids, or for South Asian kids. Communities of colour don't experience racism in the same ways. Nor is this plan about removing every Black student into a black-focussed school. Nor is this school only for Black students!

I will ask and challenge all of you who object to this school: where was your, or the mainstream's, objection to the Pink Triangle School when it began over 10 years ago? Or Hayden Park, the all-girls high school that was in Toronto for many years (I'm not sure if it's still open now)? If you personally object to those schools, that's lovely for you, so please imagine why the difference in the public's response, given that Black students attended both of those schools.

Could it possibly be that attendees of both those schools are seen as "victims" of violence and marginalization and Black students are seen as perpetrators?

Or could it be that challenging the Western model, and highlighting its inherent racism, built from the ground up, is never something the PTB want to hear? This is a system that doesn't work for Black students, and has marginalized them, leaving a big chunk of an entire population (for generations) with less of an opportunity to graduate from high school! This is a huge outrage! And it's been going on for decades with no substantial changes in the system.
[b]
Yes, of course I support changing the entire system for everyone, god I would dance in the streets if there was no more racism in any Toronto classroom, ever again. But how much longer should Black parents wait for this to happen? No longer. It's an imperfect solution, and it may very well be used as an excuse for the main public system to not make any further changes, which is the one red flag I have about the plan. But this is not enough, not nearly enough of a reason to not support this plan.[/b]

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Please stop making me quote myself, and bold my own words: it's egotistical, and redundant. [img]tongue.gif" border="0[/img]

I know, I know, the threads I linked to aren't appropriately racist enough for you bliter (and one is closed), and I'm stifling your freedom of speech and bla blaaaaa. Well that's what the anti-racism forum on a progressive web site will get ya, aww!

Give me one reason to keep this thread open.

This topic is in the anti-racism forum, whose mandate is to actually address things from non-anti-racist perspective, and to be supportive of anti-racist endeavors.

Your article does not support that position, and quite clearly could be considered racist in fact.

BCG should have closed the thread immediately.

And bliter you have no call to trash the moderator of this very forum.