This commentary originally aired on WAMU, American University Radio in Washington, D.C.
By Roger Wood
America has long touted diversity as one of its strengths, and according to a Pew Research Center survey, six in 10 Americans say they’d prefer to live in racially-mixed communities. But diversity may be more of an ideal than a reality.
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Berkeley High has over 3,400 kids, and no racial majority. It’s so big that it’s split up into six small learning communities. Read more...
The following was broadcast on 12/18/10 WABE-FM, Atlanta.
By Jordan Johnson-Bailey
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I've always been small for my age. Most of my classmates are bigger than me.
However, my brother has taught me not to let my size stop me from standing up for what is right.
When I played football in middle school, I always gave it my best - and I often got creamed. Some of those other players looked like NFL members. But , it was my brother who encouraged me to keep getting up, to face my opponent. The cool thing about my brother was that he didn’t even have to tell me what he was thinking, I just knew.
I remember one day when we were riding the bus downtown. Two white guys with Nazi symbols on their necks told an older black man to move out of his seat. The older man said he wouldn’t give it up for them. We were arriving at the bus stop near my home, and my brother told me he was going to stay on the bus to go to the store. I got off and headed home. I knew my brother wasn't really telling the truth.
Later that evening, I got a phone call from my brother. He was at the hospital. I quickly headed to see him, and I was not surprised to see who was next to him. Both my brother and the elderly man from the bus were there at the hospital. But in the room next to them were the two racists. They had more injuries and were handcuffed to their beds.
My brother had stood up to them.
Previously on WABE:
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Far outside the glamour of Paris lights, the French suburbs, called the “banlieues,” are struggling to get noticed. These racially divided areas are most often referred to in terms of fighting crime and increasing law enforcement. According to the New York Times, France has Europe's largest Muslim population and many are living in the suburbs. "The banlieues have long been considered potential incubators for religious extremism," according to the Times article. The United States is taking action to reach out to these communities.
The banlieues are well-known for the violent youth riots that happened in 2005 and 2006. In November, 2005, two French youths were killed by police. Over 2,900 youth rioters, consisting of mostly second generation immigrants living in housing projects, were arrested for burning schools, cars, and daycare centers, according to the Social Science Research Council. Nicolas Sarkozy called a state of emergency and eventually the rioting ended after three weeks.
In January of 2006, another violent youth riot broke out in the banlieues, this time consisting of mostly white youth, because of a proposed youth employment law that would lower wages and change workers’ rights. The SSRC referred to these events as evidence of a “growing crisis of social exclusion and racism affecting the French suburbs.”
Since then, the banlieues have been stuck with the stigma of violence and racial tension. Recently, there have been efforts by the United States as well as the French government to change the atmosphere. According to the New York Times, the United States Embassy in Paris is reaching out to local organizations, students, and politicians in an effort to change the culture of the banlieues as well as bolster the image of the United States in Muslim communities around the world after the events of September 11.
The United States began a visiting leadership program for French teenagers to come to the United States, and brought celebrities like Samuel L. Jackson over to speak to French students.
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The Officer
By Bashar Jawad
He isn’t mad; he isn’t mean, and he definitely is not angry! But he is a racist! His name was________ and he has been working for the Albuquerque Police Department for about seven months. He stopped us at a corner right in front of a Chinese restaurant. He sat in his car for quite awhile and then came walking towards our car.
By: Hunter Moore
(Editor's Note: This video was sent to us by Hunter Moore, a student at Henry W. Grady High School in Atlanta, Georgia. Today, demonstrators from the Westboro Baptist Church, a Kansas organization well known for protesting outside funerals for fallen soldiers, were met by hundreds of counter-protesters made up of students and community members.
The Westboro website says the church targeted Grady students because "Your parents have broken your moral compass by telling you God loves everyone and it's okay to be gay."
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The picture I just painted is one many blacks will face when taking the 2010 Census. When asked about their race, all blacks are to check a box that reads “Black, African-Am., or Negro.” Many African-Americans like me have found offense to this n-word being incorporated into the survey.
While it’s not used as much as it was before the Black Power Movement, the word still carries the weight of oppression. The word Negro once referred to slaves, servants, and sharecroppers. Whites yelled the word when they hosed down black kids on their way to school and arrested black people without cause.
The Census Bureau defends the term, saying that older blacks still identify themselves as Negroes. In fact, 50,000 people identified themselves as “Negro” on the 2000 Census. However, to my generation, Negro has no business anywhere near American society and government.
- Growing Up Biracial - Youth Radio
- All White Basketball League
- 'Post-Race America' or Recovering Racist?
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Do you think you’re not getting calls back from jobs because of the color of your skin, race, or hair texture? Well, that may not be the case. I know it sounds weird, but a recent study claims that having an ethnic name may cause you a job opportunity.
“According to a study for the National Bureau of Economics, resumes and applications with names more commonly given to white Americans were 50 percent more likely to be contacted for job interviews than those applicants with names more associated with black Americans.”via The Grio
The study also mentioned that employers download applications from those with more common white names such as Molly or Daniel than typical black name such as Maesha or Darius. This study did not prove that fewer blacks were hired because of their color of skin, but it showed that names are indicative of social background.
I always thought having a unique name set you apart but in this case being unique can leave you broke. It's not race but names that are keeping people from getting jobs. It seems that there is always something getting in the way of being successful.
According to the article there are 5 things you can do to guarantee a job. Find out what they are, after the jump.
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Prom Night in Mississippi was screened on Tuesday at the Momentum Conference in San Francisco. It’s a good movie because it is so thought-provoking. After you see it, you and your friends will definitely still be talking about it.
The documentary focused on the town of Charleston, Mississippi. In 1954 Charleston High School was asked to desegregate, but school officials didn't take immediate action. Instead, it took the school another 16 years to open its doors to black students. Years later, there was still one tradition they weren’t willing to change-- prom. The school continued to hold two separate proms, one for black students and another for white students.
In 1997, Academy Award-winner and Charleston resident Morgan Freeman, made an offer to the local school board. He said he would pay for the prom under one condition—that the prom was integrated. His offer was denied.
Ten years later filmmaker Paul Saltzman follows Freeman as he revisits the school board and presents his offer again. This time the board accepts and Prom Night in Mississippi begins.
The film follows Charleston High School seniors as they prepare for one of their most memorable high school events while facing many racial challenges. In the film we meet a bi-racial couple who struggle to show their affection in public because of what their white and black friends may think. As if that wasn’t enough, they have to stand up against their own parents’ racial beliefs.
We are also introduced to Chasidy Buckley—a young black student who earned the highest GPA in the school, but was denied the title of valedictorian because of the color of her skin.
Listen to what Buckley and 20-year-old Jessica Shivers, had to say about their school and the film.
Freedom of speech is one of many things that I admire about this country. But can freedom of speech harm people? It may not harm people physically, but emotionally it can be harmful.
After going through CNN’s page I came across a video about a 72-year-old lady in Azle, Texas who posted a sign in front of her house that reads: “Hispanics Keep Out”.
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