Actually, I find it hard to argue with her on some levels. If you were to spend time in Compton, and I have, one thing you would notice is that the schools are in abysmal shape and kids in no way receive the sort of quality education that any American needs to succeed these days.
Pray tell, what would you call it, other than injustice? As long as young people are growing up in communities surrounded by crime and depredation, where the local police department has a marked history of racism and mistreatment of minorities, and where the schools are markedly worse than in surrounding areas, do you actually think that young people from those communities have a fair shot at succeeding in life?
IS the playing field equal for a kid who is growing up in Compton, California?
I'm not going to say that it's purely an outside condition imposed on poor blacks by others. Certainly the black community bears responsibility in the realm of parenting, neighborhood values/norms, etc. BUT...are the residents of that community responsible for the fact that schools are significantly lower in quality than schools in other areas within the SAME SCHOOL DISTRICT?
That seems like injustice to me. And, I wouldn't call it pandering, per se, because it should be changed. In a just society, every kid would AT LEAST have the chance to attend a high quality school.
|