This book recounts the 1960's struggle of Mercer University, a historic Southern Baptist university in Georgia, to confront racism and cultural change. The account focuses on Sam Oni, an African and the first black student admitted to Mercer. Oni was also a Southern Baptist, a product of Mercer missionaries to Africa. In a pivotal incident when he…

Scholars know the history of oppression. They know that struggles against oppression do not evolve in a vacuum. They may suspect that where discrimination exists, revolt is only an inch below the surface. What many may not realize is that the African-American fought against bigotry, racism, vigilante injustice, brutal violence, lynching, terror,…

In 1976, U.S. District Court Judge John T. Curtin issued a court order stating that the Buffalo Board of Education, the superintendent of schools, the commissioner of education, and the New York State Board of Regents were guilty of de jure segregation. This decision led to a complete restructuring of the instructional program and a racial and…

Although the integration movement of the 1960's and the demands for cultural pluralism in the 1970's addressed the issues of racial unity and minority civil rights, a new consciousness of cross-cultural unity among all ethnic groups must be achieved if racial tension is ever to be abated. Accordingly, cultural differences must not be viewed as the…

Over the past few decades, social reproduction theorists have criticized achievement ideology as a dominant and dominating myth that hides the true nature of class immobility. Social reproductionists' primary criticism of achievement ideology is that it blinds the working class, regardless of race or gender, to the possibilities of collective…

Summarizes public opinion regarding school desegregation, busing, and racial integration. Public opinion surveys reveal a reality of public opinion on desegregation that is far more complex and more positive than might be assumed. The public appears to believe that school integration is valuable, but there is strong resistance, particularly among…

Comprises "The Underclass and the Great Migration" (N. Lemann) and "The Migrants' Tale and Ghetto Culture" (D. Whitman). Lemann's book "The Promised Land" discusses the Black migration to northern U.S. states. Whitman argues that Lemann exaggerates the Black sharecropper's contribution to the development of the…

It is critical to differentiate between desegregation and integration since only the latter denotes interaction between equals. Integration should be the goal for our schools while desegregation is one possible vehicle which may move us in that direction. To achieve integration, the issues which must be addressed are community involvement and…

An examination is presented of how lawyers and educators have brought their unique perspectives to bear on the relationship between legal right and educational opportunity in three issues. It is explained that in the formative era of segregation, increasing racial hostility forced questions of educational opportunity to take precedence over the…

An education voucher system would be more egalitarian than the existing tax code and would force the educational establishment to pursue needed reforms. The current property tax deduction system favors the rich, but the voucher system would offer the same relief to every taxpayer regardless of income and even would provide assistance to poor,…

Desegregation in elementary schools in Springfield, Massachusetts, must be rated a success. Implementation of the desegregation program, which became a reality in 1974, was successful because of the following factors: strong leadership from the superintendent; support of the mayor and the school committee (in spite of their opposition to mandatory…

In contrast to the European immigration to the United States, the African immigrant encountered economic, psychological, and emotional disorientation to such an extent that these effects continue to influence and mold the lives of Afro-Americans. This document explores the Afro-American immigrant experience through a study of some of the plays…

Finds desegregation (even that produced by federal courts) moving slowly, inequity in opportunities for Blacks in school administration, and future prospects for reform of desegregated schools, school desegregation, and minority promotion to administrative positions "extremely discouraging," especially in view of the Reagan…

Changes in the education system of Zimbabwe since the 1940s, principally in the integration and provision of improved opportunities for African Americans, are reviewed. Political factors, integration efforts, teacher education, literacy education, and plans to develop higher education opportunities are noted. (MSE)

Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall's retirement and his successor's selection should be the occasion for rededication to the goals of desegregation of schools and housing. The history of civil rights legislation and school desegregation is traced. Barriers to desegregation and equality should increase a Black individual's determination to…