In my less than humble opinion, this is not , nor should it be a campaign
issue.
Let's talk about the "real" instead of the "ideal."
First, my disclosure: I feel that planning in the Minneapolis Public
Schools is putting out fires between fads.
Karl Marx said that history repeats itself: the first time as tragedy and
the second time as farce.
The lottery system is not effective. The situation that I described in
1986 has been replicated for the residents of the Kingfield
neighborhood. I remember a City Pages article this past winter that
described the level of frustration of parents from that neighborhood with
trying to get their kids into quality, functioning schools.
Desegregation is not, repeat, not integration. I would support
integration any time over desegregation. Desegregation is a numbers game
that was implemented in the worst possible way. Instead of retaining
middle-class families it alienated them. This includes blacks as much as
whites. The fundamental issue that leads to segregation is residential
patterns. Am I missing something here? Why would you spend huge sums of
money each year on busing and not address the underlying cause of
segregation? Why not put some of the money into affordable
housing--either mortgage money or fix-up money? Link the housing support
to particular neighborhoods that are racially mixed. Make a covenant with
the families that if you move into those neighborhoods, your kids will go
to the top-rated school programs in those neighborhoods. Don't just do
this one time, but add to it incrementally. After 5 or 10 years you have
the desired outcome--desegregated schools. Then you have a chance to
integrate the schools. Is this social engineering? You bet. But it isn't
some education professional trying out some fad on your kids.
If you stabilize housing for families, then you will stablize the
schools. Why does the Minneapolis Schools keep squandering scarce
resources that don't solve the problems?
This is not the entire answer to the problem, but it is a systemic
solution that implements a strategy that has a higher likelihood of
success than the limited thinking that has won out up till now.
Is it any wonder that the graduation rates are so terrible and more and
more parents are considering other alternatives to the public schools?
In conclusion, I'd like to say that I think that the South Boston Irish
were dead on right about school busing and desegration in the 1970's. The
are the most racist, retrograde group in America, but they were
right. Busing and the ham-handed policies of school desegration destroyed
their neighborhoods. They knew it and fought against it.
I wouldn't put Minneapolis next to South Boston, but learn from your
mistakes. Don't pat yourself on the back about your schools. Strenghten
them so that you strenthen communities within the city and ultimately you
strengthen the city itself.
David Wilson
Loring Park
On Tue, 29 May 2001, Dooley, Bill wrote:
> No matter how you slice and dice it, R.T. will lose votes because his
> children are at Breck. Actually the 50% graduation story makes the situation
> worse. I looks like he is bailing out of the failing school system he would
> be perceived as leading. If his lottery problem has been fixed, he may have
> to follow the Gallmon route and re-enroll in public schools. This situation
> reminds me of my earlier days in Chicago. Union activists would check to see
> what make of car was in front of your house. If it was a "foreign car", you
> got no labor support.
>
> Bill Dooley
> Kenny
> Ward 13
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Joe <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2001 12:06 PM
> Subject: [Mpls] Star Tribune School coverage
>
>
> > On Monday there is an article discussing politicans choice of whether to
> > send their kids to public schools. On Tuesday there is an article about a
> > study that less than 50% of MPS students who start 9th grade in the system
> > graduate.
> >
> > It would have been interesting if the two stories appeared the same day.
> > Perhaps on the same page. May I propose the headline:
> >
> > "Some politicans choose not to send their kids to Public School. . . .
> where
> > 50% of kids don't graduate."
> >
> >
> >
> > Joseph Barisonzi
> > Lyndale 10-5 pk.6
> >
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________
> > Minneapolis Issues Forum - Minnesota E-Democracy
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> >
>
> _______________________________________
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