In 1960 the author's world changed radically when, as a 2nd grader at P.S. 121 in East Harlem, he learned that he was among a group of students who would help fulfill the integration mandate of the Brown v. Board of Education decision. In this article, the author discusses the benefits and drawbacks of his integration experiences, and of school integration as a whole. Chief among the disadvantages were the facts that integration was far from universal, and that it usually traveled down a one-way street, placing the burden on the victims of discrimination. Ultimately, the major weakness of the Brown decision--the assumption that African-Americans would have access to the same high-quality education as their white counterparts if they attended integrated schools--has led to major difficulties in closing the achievement gap, showing that it does not make sense to equate integration with equality. (Contains 1 figure.)