Kaali Roberts
Dr. Brown
English 306
November 3, 2016
Historical
Context Draft
In my paper I seek to
expound on the history of desegregation busing and why the white community were
so enraged by the new movement passed by identifying the areas of significance.
The busing movement took place in the year of 1971 and because of press
coverage, was focused predominantly on the east coast; Boston was a city that
gained the most news coverage due to the backlash of the newly implemented movement.
This backlash is what ultimately made the movement as notable as it was.
Relapsing history before
desegregation, in 1849 The Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled that “segregated
schools are permissible under the state’s constitution” (Tolerance, 2004) which
would later be used as a support to the “separate but equal doctrine’ by the
Supreme Court. A century later, the University of Arkansas is desegregated
following the groundbreaking moment in history when the Supreme court prompts
for the admission of black students into the University of Oklahoma of Law
school; this is a pivotal moment as blacks were not permitted to enter law
school. As seen throughout history, African American’s have been granted many
basic rights; so why was the integration that busing forced such a contentious
subject for the white community? Whilst African American students were pleased
to receive a chance of a better education by being sent to predominantly white
schools, why were the parents of the white community disconcerted?
Before those questions
can be answered we must understand what the purpose of busing desegregation
was. According to the Leadership Conference, used to “end segregated education
and to put African American and white children in the same classroom… as well
as end the inequality inherent in all “separate but equal facilities”
(Conference, 2001) the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka ruling in 1954,
was just the originate of a soon to be crusade that would ultimately be one of
the most notorious integration movements for youth in history. The government
did not expect to be so vexing in neither the black or white community.
Desegregation busing was
the act of designating and transporting children to schools both inside and
outside their local school districts as a means of diminishing segregation in
local schools. But in doing so, caused a great deal of disturbance in the white
community as they claimed it provided instability for their children
educationally and they were being bused to “unsafe locations”. This in turn
created “white flight”, the act in which middle classed and upper classed white
residents began fleeing to suburban areas which were not affected by the
mandatory busing. As mentioned, Boston gained a lot of news coverage but it was
not the only place that desegregation busing took place. Cities such as
Chicago, Detroit and Los Angeles experienced and witnessed how education
differentiated among the two races. Ruth Batson, Boston civil rights activist
and mother, spoke of the differences in the white and black schools stating,
“when we would go to white schools, we’d see the lovely classrooms, with a
small number of children…. The teachers were permanent. We’d see wonderful
materials.” (Delmont, 2016) when she attended a white school during the busing
movement. This is drastically different from her description of the conditions
of the predominantly black school she attended which she labeled as
“overcrowded classrooms, children sitting out in the corridors and so forth”
(Delmont, 2016). This relates to the living conditions most African Americans resided
during the 70’s. According to Reynolds Farley, Translator of the American
Sociological Review, “two thirds of southern blacks were in rural areas”
(Farley, 189) mostly impoverished in a time where radical black nationalism of
organizations such as the black panthers were active.
Taking into consideration
the educational facility differences between the black and white schools in this
period, judged by the account given by Ruth Batson, higher level of education
and having reliable instructors who will be present for classes would be
something new and desired by the parents of African American children who
haven’t gotten this opportunity.
Finally, in the year of
1971, the desegregation busing plan went into motion consequently affecting
public schools. Children were forced to bus outside of their school district in
order to integrate the two races. This, inspired the infamous “White flight”.
James Colman, who was referenced in the book School Desegregation and White
Flight explains what is the aftereffect of merging black and whites together
not of free will by expressing the “extremely strong reactions of individual
whites in moving their children out of large districts engaged I massive and
rapid desegregation suggests that in the long run the policies that have been
pursued will defeat the purpose of increasing overall contact among races”
(Rossell, 675)
In the preface of Ronald
P. Formisano’s book, Boston Against Busing,
he quotes with words of a distressed white mother conversing with a judge in
the year of 1974 stating, “I just want to let you know how opposed I am to your
forced busing order” (cite) but as apposed as this mother was, she claimed to
have “silently protested and aloud to each other (referring to her spouse)”
(cite). She describes the scene of the protest as a “nightmare, helicopters overhead,
police everywhere, for which I am thankful” (cite). Whilst reading this book I
discovered that though the mother opposed the movement, she still let her
children attend school the first day; and that would be the last and she
described the behavior of her community as “so unchristian like, it truly
hurts” (cite). Why were some of the people in the white community reacting so brutishly
toward the movement? In keeping with Formissano, one of his supporting claims
of the radical behavior was due to the “benefit from the institutional
arrangement that keep a huge proportion of the black population in a
subordinate position” (Formisanno, xi).
Lastly, relating and
analyzing to Griffin’s protest development, the act of inception occurred when
the busing movement was implemented in Boston, as that is when “a host
aggressor (Supreme Court) rhetoricians and is itself sufficient to initiate the
movement”( Griffin, 11). In relation to the initiation of new arguments by the
opposing groups, that is well suited to the protesters as they state their new
argument and are opposing the initial host. The crisis evidently being the
backlash from the implementation of the movement in the white community. Then,
in the cossumation, the host aggressor gives up all efforts. This correlates
with the end of the busing movement in Boston in the year of 1988.
Kaali Roberts
Dr. Brown
English 306
November 3, 2016
Rhetorical
Paper Draft
It was 1971; the year
that busing desegregation was supported by the Supreme Court to attain
desegregation in schools. A time that could be viewed as a dramatic and a
great, pivotal part of history, took a turn for the worst. Focusing on one of
the most well- known protesting cities, Boston, I will provide information on
why, after desegregation busing was implemented by the court, the white
community was in a state of tumult. In examination of two picture images
provided in the busing era, the protest signs of children and parents stating
their distaste for racial integration as well as journals written by children
who were forced to bus, will
be analyzed. The signs included statements expressing that, “we won’t go to
school with negroes” (Graff, Pathak, Purgus, Nix, & Sachs).
This paper pertains to
scholars who study racial issues, students who chose to cover the history of
racism or radical protests and those who seek clarity on busing desegregation.
This could mean gaining understand of the effectiveness of this plan, or
solidifying a stand point that one was unsure of before. Catering to this
specific audience …..
For 14 years, Boston
Public school children were forced to be transported to a different area in
Boston to fully integrate schools. According to civil rights activists and
academic researchers, “mixing the races was never the goal; rather, equal
funding and equal opportunity were. As long as black and white students were in
separate schools, black schools were starved for funds, materials, teachers and
building repairs” (Graff,
Pathak, Purgus, Nix, & Sachs). And by putting the two races in the same
environment, the activists expected funding discrepancy’s to be minute. In
doing so, anger took the place of unity in the white neighborhoods as they felt
threatened by this mandatory acts.
The case of Michael
Faith: an attendee of South Boston High School as a participant in the 1974
busing act was stabbed. After this event, which occurred in the very first year
of busing in Boston, the white community resorted to yelling racial epithets
and preventing black students from leaving the school. This was one of the episodes that took away
all rationality from the white community and set them aside from the black
community. This identity is important as it prompted signs such as “Go back to
Africa negroes”. Those who witnessed
this event were affected emotionally. One day after the attack a newspaper
published a story on the stabbing, claiming that approximately, “700 whites
gathered outside the school” (Bassett) compared to a meager 250 police
officers. During this upheaval, white and African American students became the
main audience.
Looking into key terms projected
during this movement, some come from the sixth grade students who were bused to
Oliver Wendell Holmes School which was established in a black neighborhood in
Dorchester. One of the few schools integrated without violence. Throughout the
essay’s multiple students used the word thought to describe their disbelief
that their prior thoughts on being integrated had been disproved. Although most
of the authors of these essays has been blurred out and names as anonymous
their words are still powerful. The most common misconception that the white
community had was that their children were being bused to a school where there
was no diversity (strictly African Americans), as most children wrote, “ I
thought I would be bused to an all-black school.” (…., 12). Others used the word “fear” and “scared” to
describe not the integration process in the school, but the violence that was
happening outside of that. A student of Wendell recalls “kids getting stabbed,
buses being rocked at students, police cars being overturned” and another who
claims her fear stemmed from feeling that she was “going to be alone” (Neena).
These key terms have been
defined by white flight. It is evident that one point stressed during the
busing process by the children was their constant emotion of fear caused by the
induced integration and moving of schools. With that in mind, as well as
incident concerning 17-year-old Mike Faith who was stabbed, among the two
races, we observe the act of white flight amongst the white community. In Diane
Ravich’s journal, she dissects Dr. James Coleman, a sociologist and proponent
of school desegregation's preliminary results that decided that forced
integration cause the white community to flee. This behavior was the act of “leaving
both large and middle- sized cities with high proportions of blacks” (Ravich,1)
as stated by Coleman.
When thinking about the
use of “I thought” during most of the essays written by children it stemmed
from what they have seen from outside of the school walls. The word “I thought”
has been defined through the violence in the white community. An anonymous
writer from the group of essays written by students’ states that “said to
myself there will be too many fights between black and whites” (Neena,11) and
another stating, “I thought the whites might have guns and shoot at the tires”
(Neena,10) in relation to busing to Wendell.
With much focus on Boston
during the busing desegregation act. It only gained its attention due to the
violent protests carried out by white community. Reading articles, journals and
books that expressed the hardships black individuals endured during this time
intrigued me. These sources claimed that rocks were thrown at buses, racial
slurs were yelled, police cars were tipped over and some white children did not
attend school. This provoked me to question why there was so much tension
amongst the busing movement. Was this protests because of race or the actual
movement? Prior to in depth research, i surmised that the anger from the
protests were directed at the forced integration of schools. Also, I initially
thought that busing a child to a school 20 minutes away versus attending a
school that they are used to as well as being in closer proximity. I came to
this conclusion after I read an journal by Jane M. Hornburger of Boston
University who expounded on the events that has taken place during this time by
describing the busing scene as frightening and recalled "caravans of buses
have been escorted by squads of motorcycle police... still, the violence was
not prevented" (Hornburger, 1976).
Hornburger also gives history of racial violence to support the then
recent busing protest. She recollects history in 1847 where Whites in South
Boston boasted that there was not “a single colored family among them"
(Hornburger, 1976).
In the sense of political
social and legislative goals, it differs from that of my rhetorical goals
stated because they call for the acceptance of an audience. When laws are passed,
it is not created by the voice of one; but the opinion of many. The same can be
said for political goals. The goals of a politician can be to serve the
country, and promise to do things to better the community but all of these
promises cannot be fulfilled without the vote of an audience or someone else of
equal power. In the goals of my protest, although I am relating my subject to
the wider audience, I am not depending on the vote or acceptance to validate my
claim. Instead, I am providing information; factual information by scholarly
cites to show exactly why the white community was enraged.
People who are involved
in the movement us political and legislative goals to articulate by expressing
their opposition to the movement. They showed their dislike for people outside
of the movement, such as the Supreme Court by creating signs filled with racial
slurs and disapproval almost as a sign of rebellion.
Works
Cited
Bassett, Edward W. “Boston schools close after stabbing, protests.”
The Bryan Times 12 December 1974: A9. Print.
Conference, Leadership. "School
Desegregation and Equal Educational Opportunity." The Leadership
Conference. He Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights/The Leadership
Conference Education Fund, 2001. Web. 1 Nov. 2016.
Delmont, Mathew.
"The Lasting Legacy of the Boston Busing Crisis." The Atlantic.
Atlantic Media Company, 29 Mar. 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.
Hornburger, Jane M. "Deep Are
the Roots: Busing in Boston." The Journal of Negro Education 44.3 (1976):
235-45. JSTOR. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.
Nix, Joanna, and Risa Sachs.
"The Schuster Institutefor Investigative Journalism." Busing &
Desegregation 40 Years Later. Ed. E. J. Graff, Neena Pathak, and Claire Pavlik
Purgus. Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism at Brandeis University,
n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2016.
Taylor, Steven J. L. Desegregation in
Boston and Buffalo: The Influence of Local Leaders. Albany: State University of
New York Press, 1998. Print.
Tolerance, Teaching.
"BROWN V. BOARD: Timeline of School Integration in the U.S." Teaching
Tolerance. Southern Poverty Law Center, Spring 2004. Web. 01 Nov. 2016.
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