What It Is?

Are you smarter than a 5th Grader?

H/T Hari Kondabolu

Untapped Talents: My Brother's Keeper Launches

It's always a pleasure to drop by, see what's up around here, and add a little something. Starting out, I was so impressed with this young man's talent, his enthusiasm, and joyous hope for the future. If you didn't catch Daniel Clarke Bouchard today on Ellen DeGeneres, you missed something very special. This young man of 14 years has already played Carnegie Hall. He proudly proclaims that classical music is his foundation, though now he's moving into jazz. Take a moment to hear the energy, joy and talent in this young professional's music.

Seeing this, one can't help but hope that Daniel Clarke Bouchard's shining spirit, bright as polished silver, isn't ever tarnished by the taint of racism. But today, parents still must have "the talk," about racial profiling in all its insidious variations, just as Attorney General Eric Holder admits his own father had with him.

“I thought of my father’s words years later, when – as a college student – I was pulled over twice on the New Jersey turnpike and my car was searched – even though I was sure I hadn’t been speeding,” he said, according to his prepared remarks. “I thought of them again some time after that, when a police officer stopped and questioned me in Washington while I was running to catch a movie – even though I happened to be a federal prosecutor at the time.”

It's said that all things new are old, and that applies to racism as well. Each generation must shoulder the burden of advancing the cause of social justice, of equality for all. And so it is with President Obama's recent initiative, My Brother's Keeper. In announcing the initiative, he outlined some dimensions of the problem.

Many boys and young men of color will arrive at kindergarten less prepared than their peers in early language and literacy skills, leaving them less likely to finish school. Labor-force participation rates for young men of color have dropped, and far too many lack the skills they need to succeed. The disproportionate number of African American and Hispanic young men who are unemployed or involved in the criminal justice system undermines family and community stability and is a drag on State and Federal budgets. And, young men of color are far more likely to be victims of murder than their white peers, accounting for almost half of the country's murder victims each year. These outcomes are troubling, and they represent only a portion of the social and economic cost to our Nation when the full potential of so many boys and young men is left unrealized.

Attorney General Holder, who admits to having his own skirmishes with the law because of racial profiling, "spoke on the importance of an open relationship between police and the communities they serve. He described plans to bring together “civil rights organizations and law enforcement leaders to identify areas of concern – and reduce the likelihood that race will play any role in the investigation and prosecution of crimes.”

“As it stands – in far too many places – a vicious cycle of poverty, criminality, and incarceration traps individuals, devastates families, and weakens communities,” he said. “It is long past time for us to break this cycle.”

President Obama detailed the need with the grim statistics.

For decades, opportunity has disproportionately lagged behind for boys and young men of color – particularly in our African American and Latino communities. As recently as 2013, only 14 percent of black boys and 18 percent of Hispanic boys scored proficient or above on the 4th grade reading component of the National Assessment of Educational Progress compared to 42 percent of white boys and 21 percent of black and Hispanic girls. Youth who cannot read “proficiently” by third grade are four times less likely to graduate high school by 19.

By the time students have reached 9th grade, 42 percent of black male students have been suspended or expelled during their school years, compared to 14 percent of white male students. While black youth account for 16 percent of the youth population, they represent 28 percent of juvenile arrests, and 37 percent of the detained population. While just over 6 percent of the overall population, black males of all ages accounted for 43 percent of murder victims in 2011.

The fraction of young men not working or enrolled in school is nearly twice as high for blacks than whites. Those neither working nor in school are not building the skills and experience needed to ensure their ability to succeed later in life.

I do not want to hear another word about what Alvin Holmes said. Not one.

State Rep. Alvin Holmes, D-Montgomery

It is not my intention, in this post, either to defend what state Rep. Alvin Holmes (D) said, or to praise what state Rep. Alvin Holmes said.  It is my intention to defend Rep. Alvin Holmes right (pun intended) to say what he said.

Once upon a time, a black man would never raise his voice at a white man. Once upon a time, when a white man told a black man to do something, the black man would say, "Yes sir boss." Those days are gone.
Even nowadays, many black politicians are afraid to be perceived as "the angry black man" or "the angry black woman".  Many lower their voices and moderate their speech patterns, expressions and mannerisms to appease hyper-sensitive white voters.

Thank goodness state Rep. Alvin Holmes is not that kind of black elected official.  I commend Rep. Holmes for speaking out for the rights of all Alabama women to choose to have a safe, legal, abortion.  Because make no mistake, this bill will not prevent any women with means from having access to an abortion, this bill adversely and disproportionately affects black/brown/poor Alabama women and children who are already born.  Children republicans don't want to have access to quality affordable health care, access to a quality public education, or even  food.

If you want to know who and what the Alabama GOP panders too,  all you have to do is read some of the comments on  Al.com.  See what I mean below:

 Actually, Holmes can bait for race or race for bait....whites have grown totally indifferent to the whining, crying and moaning of the black underclass. For anyone who could possibly be concerned, consider the source.

 Mr. Holmes is just angry because he knows the days of race baiting by black politicians is coming to an end. The black vote has been bought and paid for by the Democrat party and the party has moved on to the new kid in town....illegal aliens.

 Alvin Holmes is a race baiter. He always plays the race card to get the uninformed voters to vote for him. He does nothing but stir up hate, He is what wrong with Alabama now.

State Rep. Alvin Holmes, D-Montgomery is dumbing down those who vote for him. Vote him out before everyone is owned by the Government.

I don't agree with the point of view expressed above, but I defend their right to express their point of view without being vilified/castigated. Racism is not about what was said,  it's about what is done.

I am sick and tired of some (not to be confused with all) white people telling grown a$$ black folks what they can or cannot say, how loud they can play their music, what they can wear , or, when they can protest about the way they are being treated. It is condescending at best, racist/racism at worst.

Enough!

"It is apparent that Mr Holmes was decrying the blatant hypocrisy of most of the legislature members. They bring to the forum legislation written by outside sources such as ALEC that is divisive, unnecessary, and counter to existing law. A thinking person wonders why his words would bring the ire of so many. The answer for me is that they know he is speaking the truth and cannot deal with it."

 It's not about what Alvin Holmes said, it was about what house republicans did.

Robert Reich on Social Justice and Social Empathy

What does empathy have to do with inequality? At this GGSC event, Robert Reich, former U.S. secretary of labor and a professor at UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy, discusses how socio-economic inequality contributes to frayed social bonds—and explains what we can do about it.

Republished from the Greater Good Science Center, University of California - Berkley

The Greater Good Science Center studies the psychology, sociology, and neuroscience of well-being, and teaches skills that foster a thriving, resilient, and compassionate society.

WARdynski's Pinnacle Plan "So Many, Many, Many, Things Wrong Here" Redux

The New Jim Crow

Let's recap;  The Huntsville City School Board voted to close the Fletcher E. Seldon Alternative School and send the district's most troubled students  (i.e. black/brown/poor) to a private, residential, drug treatment center under the guise it was more cost effective.
Not.
Not only do the facts not fit the ahem narrative, parent's/taxpayers aren't aware of the Pinnacle policy until it's too late to do anything about it.

Ain't that a dip?

The following questions and concerns were presented to, and ignored by the Huntsville City Schools Board of Education regarding the true cost for Pinnacle.

1.  The cost for the Pinnacle program is more than was represented in board meeting because it was not made known to the public that the amount per student in the contract was only for the remainder of this school year and NOT the entire school academic school year.

2. AND … if Seldon Center teachers will still be working in the system, how is Pinnacle saving money if they are still paying salaries for those teachers?  Especially when their salaries were included in the cost per student projection that was told to the public?

3.  The superintendent has the option to select students to go to the Pinnacle program.  This is a selective referral.

4.  Pinnacle has the option to determine eligibility for the program or DENY a student’s entrance into the program.  This leaves room for SELECTIVITY.

5.  The staff still does not represent a diverse population even though they said they would adjust that at a prior board meeting.

6.  The student population still represents a majority white privileged population.  Approx. 90% 

7.  Members of the Pinnacle staff call the Seldon Center seeking advice for how to handle particular student behavior.   They are having trouble controlling many of the children.  Example: how does Seldon Center staff make the students behave during lunch period?

8.  HCS provides lunches to Pinnacle.  HOW IS THIS SAVING HCS MONEY?

9.  Huntsville City Schools is expected to provide Pinnacle special education services.  They do not have a person on their staff to handle IEPs ( Individualized Educational Instruction) for each sped student. WHY ARE WE PROVIDING STAFF? HOW IS THIS SAVING MONEY? 

10. Pinnacle’s TRAINED therapists have a hard time adjusting student behavior to their pre-established profiles to identify and control behavior. 

11. The student who participated in the pilot program admitted that they were put in time out as a consequence for behavior and, himself considered this form of punishment as a joke.  Even they say that the staff cannot control the students.   Especially the black students.  ASK HOW MANY STUDENTS HAVE BEEN PUT OUT OF THE PROGRAM AND WHAT COLOR THEY WERE!

12. Students are expected to sit at a computer for eight hours and do online courses.  Kids fall asleep at the computers.

13. Huntsville City Schools is rumored to have purchased the building from Scott McClain Realty for Pinnacle.  Pinnacle was originally located on Governors Drive in a small building and claimed that they had the facility they needed to accommodate students.

So now that we know, what can/are we the tax payers going to do about it?  Our money and the future of our children is at stake.  

Today's Must Reads

The NAACP's Failing of Our Black Children

Institutional Racism in America; the 21st Century Jim Crow