The experience of El-Melek Moore’s two children at Williamsburg’s PS 132 is a tale of two realities.
Moore’s daughter, a Black child and one of the best readers in her cohort, is thriving in her Gifted and Talented class whose demographics skew white and Asian. Moore’s son, a Black child with learning disabilities, has experienced racism in a classroom populated mainly by children of color, she…
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Not my kids’ school so I don’t have a lot of insight into the situation (though some people quoted in this article used to go to PS110), and it’s hard to tell how selective the quoting is from the now-unavailable instagram comments.
That said, people who just say “the things asked for in a petition aren’t things I like” but don’t concretely propose alternatives don’t seem like they’re really trying to solve equity problems, they come across like they’re trying to put sandbags around the status quo.
Notably, the “counter-petition” has the same problem: it basically says “everything’s fine”. This dismissal of experiences from POC is a reflex that makes me a bit sad — after George Floyd and so many others, “everything’s fine” strikes me as a disingenuous response.
It is imperative to listen to the experiences of Black children and their families. I am a white mother and educator in a NYC Public School. “Microaggressions” and blatant RACIST behaviors happen all of the time. Many white people are unaware of their implicit, unconscious biases, yet their behaviors are profoundly damaging to Black and Brown children and adults. The Principal at this school has an egregious history of blatant racist behavior. If she is not being condemned, punished or fired for her behavior, how can there be any accountability for the teachers to do better. Racism is the fabric of this nation and now that the truths of this country are being shown, the 2020-2021 school year is going to full of teaching ANTI-RACIST curriculum, teaching the truth about US History and its UGLY racist roots from day 1 of colonization.
This is how systemic racism will be dismantled. Every school needs to be on board to make these changes. This school needs changes in its administration, in order to allow children to learn the TRUTH about US History and begin to dismantle systemic racism that plagues this nation!
The fact that my (white) child has had nothing but wonderful experiences at this school doesn’t mean the institution is doing everything right. Students and families experiencing racism and bias should be disturbing to everyone. Parents who are attempting to belittle these experiences are horribly dismissive and only furthering systemic racism. We must demand more from our school so that EVERY student feels they are in a safe and supportive space.
A diverse and safe public school absolutely must not answer a request of support for the Black Lives Matter movement with “change your message to ‘All Lives Matter’” when that is clearly the responding cry of the people who feel their power structure is threatened. It is not only tonedeaf, but it is cowardly and very clearly a response to marginalised people that you do not see or acknowledge the centuries of struggle and fear they and those who look like them have had to and still face daily. It is a phrase adopted by white supremicists in this country to incite conflict. Anyone pretending to not know this at this late stage of the game, is being deliberately obtuse or is lying and veiling their insecurity and support of systemic racism with a loosely veiled platitude.
IF you don’t like all of the demands presented by a discriminated or marginalised group, your knee jerk reaction should never be to discount their experiences and truths. I’m shocked that this needs to be said today. The victim blaming that is happening by some in this community is disgusting and is shining a light on some real true colours.
If you are not fully committed to providing all children with an anti-racist education, then you have no business working in education in any capacity. Shut this school down until the staff is full of people who actually love children.
Amen
https://harpers.org/a-letter-on-justice-and-open-debate/
I am a teacher in District 14, where P.S. 132 is located. Our community will not stand for this! The clear racism and negligence on the part of P.S. 132 staff and administration are harmful and irresponsible. I attended a recent SLT meeting at P.S. 132 where a PEP member asked the principal directly to address the concerns and demands of parents regarding anti-racist and CRSE curriculum and pedagogy. The principal smiled and said that, unfortunately, there just wasn’t any time to address those concerns. How can a principal summarily dismiss parent concerns of racism under the thin veil of timing constraints? Why is our superintendent not taking action? Superintendent Winnicki, your community demands accountability. Publicly denounce the racist behavior of the principal and parent coordinator! Fulfill the demands of P.S. 132 parents for equitable education for their students!
I also attended that meeting and witnessed the PEP member asking the principal about anti-racist and CRSE curriculum and pedagogy. It was a lame and dismissive response from the principal. And I agree, our superintendent does not seem to be taking action to hold principals and schools accountable for the racist experiences our Black, Latinx, Asian, immigrant, and ELLs are having. A public statement from the superintendent specifically addressing PS132 is not a radical demand. And the P.S. 132 parents for change demands are not radical either, I don’t see why they can’t be fulfilled with the full and eager support of the principal, of our superintendent, and the DOE.
Amazingly, I attended this same SLT online meeting and had a completely different perspective. What you are posturing as racist was in reality, an overly aggressive parent hijacking a meeting that had NOTHING to do with this to bring attention to their personal agenda. It was correct of the principal to be as dismissive of this individual as this individual was of the stated agenda. Please tell all sides of the story people.
Thank you Melissa for being courageous and not being bullied by people with personal agendas behind a racist/homophobic narrative. And Mike’s link is a wonderful reminder that we are all human beings and we should strive for dialogue to make what’s wrong, right. A parent, David Magdaleno, actually wants to have an OPEN dialogue and on the opposite end of the spectrum, Kenyatta Reid DISMISSED a parent’s concern about a petition’s point and threatened that parent’s business. That’s why Mike’s link is so important and everyone should read it. My take away is that one side has anecdotals and they don’t necessarily scream of systemic racism at this school. Now, is it because I’m white and so I’m unaware of my implicit and unconscious biases? Because I don’t understand will someone’s respond to my comment and brand me a racist and shut me down like the parents in the article?
You dont understand the link and its context and you are misappropriating its ideas. You also dont seem to understand systemic racism or what it looks like. Systemic racism is what is happening at ps 123. Systemic racism is threatening to call the police on a Black woman for wanting to organize a peaceful boycott of a persons business (fully her constitutional right). Systemic racism is how you cant see or understand systemic racism. Its embodied in David Magdelano’s position of minimizing other people’s trauma , pain and experiences because he has had a nice experience.
U have asked in your post if you are unaware of your racism. There is no need to comment on it. Your comment is proof.
He is not a parent he is DOE PEP and he is there to give OVERSIGHT to beth because she is doing a substandard job.
He is not a parent he is PEP
Melissa Tom Sheppard is not an overly aggressive parent he is the DOE head of P.E.P. Please get the facts, you are incorrect. P.E.P IS OVERSIGHT of Beth. Beth was afraid of what’s happening. Tom Sheppard is there because of the racism at 132.
Kenya was the overly aggressive parent. You all were there – speak the truth and use your real names. Are you all still bitter about the ridiculous meal program that was contested because none of the students who benefit most would ever eat it but it made you feel good to be feeding everyone chickpeas? How about the posturing to cancel all holidays at the school? The bulk of you aren’t even zoned for 132 so if it’s really this bad, why subject yourself to it? The easiest solution is to simply go to your zoned school and be happy? Kenya says her mom didn’t want her to go here and Kenya has shared that she isn’t even in the district. If it’s that bad, just go to your local school as I’m sure it’s perfect.
Racism without the hood
Thank you David for responding to my comment and your kindness to my misunderstanding. Let me explain my position on how I understood the linked article and where I took my points from. It’s pretty simple… it was about having people talk to each other, having dialogue. Not having to shut anyone down. You have to convince me otherwise when a parent agrees with BLM but doesn’t with a point about a school and she’s still THREATENED… I need a better explanation. If I can’t see racism and I can’t understand racism, then how are we ever going to move forward? How can we fix this if white people can never understand and never see it? That makes no sense. And the examples are nothing but anecdotals and hurt feelings. So yes, I am going to dismiss and minimize other peoples trauma in regards to the school. Let’s be smart about this. Do we want someone to claim it’s the end of the world because they got a paper cut or do we want to put it in perspective where Uncle So-n-So got shot in the head during WW2? But why did you dismiss their nice experiences? Isn’t that just as valuable as a bad experience? Can’t we just talk about it and see it where it takes us? Isn’t that what we want for our children( I don’t have any yet)? The ability to take good things and many bad things and have children draw their own conclusions without… WITHOUT ANY PREJUDICES?
I think your last two lines are wonderful… and very creative.
You have provided no proof of where I misinterpreted the link. I have stated my position clearly about open dialogue and fixing the causes of inequality. My comment about whether I am a racist is neither an admission nor a confession of guilt because I am white. For you to simply agree or state that I am white or simply throw my own words back at me, irrespective of my innocence or guilt, makes YOU a racist. Stating that I don’t understand doesn’t make me so. But I do admit David, again, your last two lines are golden and well thought out.
I am not going to support this uber-racialization. My support is of togetherness and some people seem to undermine the cause of inequality and create this manufactured crisis and it undermines the real causes of racism. Please attack the argument and not the person… I believe we can have a better world if we can just talk. (Full disclosure… from Glendale, living above in laws in Greenpoint, no kids but having a lot of fun trying.)
Draw conclusions about racism? Have opinions about raisn. Take the good with bad, cant we just all get together share our stories and love each other. U said u live a over your in laws is that where plant 2 is?