Show notes
For many, the words “civil rights” conjure images of the past, focusing on politicians, lawyers, activists. However, our guests today ask us to consider the civil rights implications we face today in the fight for a quality, 21st century education for all kids. Dr. Kia Darling-Hammond was recently commissioned to write about the importance of civil rights in the fight for educational equity, particularly the importance of the data collected by the Civil Rights Data Collection. Through that work, she enlisted her mother, Dr. Linda-Darling-Hammond, to co-author a new book, The Civil Rights Road to Deeper Learning: Five Essentials for Equity. With a focus on classrooms, as well as many factors outside of classrooms, the book asks us to consider the ongoing fight for civil rights, and how it plays out in our education system every day. While there continue to be important roles for political leaders, lawyers, and activists, the book also highlights the roles we can all play in pushing for an educational system that truly creates the world we want our kids to inherit.
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The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.
This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.
Music by Kevin Casey.
We’re thrilled to share these final thoughts on the episode from Drs. Darling-Hammond:
“White parents aren’t the only parents who are facing challenging decisions about integrated school settings. This is a challenge for everyone, and we detail several considerations in the book, particularly around the importance of using restorative practices and social emotional learning instead of punitivity.
It’s notable how many Black families have chosen to keep their children out of public school all together, even when schools reopened, due to the noticeable reduction in their children’s distress. We’d love to end on a hopeful note, but it is important to bring attention to these challenges. In integrated settings, Black, Indigenous, Latiné, and Asian students can truly suffer as school climate reflects the larger oppressive society.
It’s not enough to just put everyone together in a school building and say, “Done!”
We also need all parents, especially those with financial and political capital, to fight to resource districts and schools. When that happens, all children can receive a high quality, deeper learning education, regardless of where their school is located. We discuss this in the book, as well.
Powerful change happens when people of good conscience run for seats on local boards. It happens when communities that have a lot of privilege amplify, uplift, and create empowering conditions for communities that don’t – Rather than running for that board seat, sponsoring the campaign of a Black mother who is under-resourced, but deeply understands the community’s needs. Sometimes people have to get out of the way while they pave the way.
And at those board meetings and parent meetings and committee meetings, we need everyone to advocate for those restorative, humanizing practices that honor children as whole people with rich emotional lives and needs. Powerful change happens when parents advocate for true inclusion, for belonging. Especially right now, as we see such a push for exclusion, censorship, and privatization, people of good conscience need to come together, build collective understanding, organize, and act. Be in those meetings, schedule time with administrators, write letters, make phone calls, interact on social media… this is how we fight for our rights – our children’s futures – not individually, but together, en masse, with purpose and perseverance.
Civic engagement is effective – often more effective than people realize. People taking time to call and comment – it adds up – and it can, and does, translate into policy. And it allows those of us (policymakers) who want to create humane, inclusive schools to be reinforced in our ability to do so.
All parents of all backgrounds want their child to be in a school environment where they feel welcome and experience belonging. And there’s work to do for even the most “privileged” kids to be at a place where they can feel that they are belonging, and welcome. Depression rates are high all the way around. Pressure is high all the way around. Families can intervene in this together. They don’t even have to make solutions up. Blueprints exist. (And we talk about some of those in the book, as well). These healthy environments require advocating for all kids.
Finally, and this is key, children are the experts on their experiences. They have wisdom and we, adults, need to be guided by it. Together we can build the education that our children need and deserve. The more of us who show up, the lighter the lift.”
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