Comments on: Demonizing Racism at Gallaudet… Among Other Things.

By: KJ

KJ — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 03:26:29 +0000

If you want to know, ask people of color. Ask women. Ask deaf-blind people. Ask around. Check the pulse of dynamics.

By: Julie Rems-Smario

Julie Rems-Smario — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 21:44:30 +0000

Racism is everywhere. Even if it is minor, it is still serious. We dont even tolerate minor audism.

By: KJ

KJ — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 16:18:45 +0000

I remember back in the day, in third grade, I did something similar to what these students were doing today. In 1979 - 1980, there were only two deaf black students, including myself, in third grade, at a mainstreamed school. At school, we, black students, noticed that there were so many white students, so many white teachers. Okay. I wasn’t allowed to play games, as in football, basketball, or any fun activities with white students mostly because I’m new, black, and small. They’d take the other black student because he’s big, faster and all. I didn’t like what was happening. I ended up always standing on the sidelines and watch the game. Everyday, whenever there’s recess time, I’d run over, with hope that I’d be able to play, and end up being disappointed. That lead to division between deaf black students and deaf white students. We’d ended up playing black vs white in any sport. A lot of times we’d win, or we’d get into fights. Our resource teacher told us not to do this again, because it’s not acceptable. I was hurt by that because it goes back to me being alone. On Sidelines again. One day, the football landed near me. I picked it up, and one student came to get it from me, I threw it to his face. He threw me down, I got up and ran after him. Man, did I lose it!? Teacher tried to hold me back, couldn’t. I continued to ran after him and got him, and hurt him. I was taken back to the resource room and my teacher said I shouldn’t have done it. I said I’d do it again if I have to. (Period, damn straight.) Good enough, a few days later, those same white students allowed me to play. It brings the question to my mind, in 3rd grade, racism actually happened!? I had to FIGHT to get my chance to play just like every other student at school. Why did I even have to fight? Anyway, playing football with other students got me to feel better because I could actually play. I’ve made a lot of interceptions, and I’ve ran as fast and faster than other kids.

I can imagine how black students have been feeling when they are outnumbered, out manned with support in their schools.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 15:27:39 +0000

my understanding is that the “black kkk” team had to write a paper. (i heard it was a member of the black kkk team that wanted it to be black vs white) that was their punishment. the “nazi” team is expelled and facing possible criminal charges.

By: KJ

KJ — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 13:04:59 +0000

Education is all about reducing from repeating mistakes. Education is all about admitting that there’s flaws in the program or system. It’s not about making the same mistakes over and over again, knowing that it will blow out of proportion which brought media into this. Expulsion is an effective answer, especially when students have been continuously getting away with murder. Are you saying that with an improve fire alarm system that would identify who have pulled the alarm, students shouldn’t be expelled for false alarm? Did you know that last year, MSSD students pulled fire alarm on daily basis or more than 3 times a day? No expulsion if caught with obvious proof? You’re kidding, right?

By: Dim Sum

Dim Sum — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 07:08:02 +0000

Isn’t education all about making mistakes, learning from them and avoiding the same mistakes again? I don’t think explusion is the answer here. If there is a time to educate these students, it’s now.

Regarding the media, I think this event was totally overblown. Every year, enough kids to fill a classroom are being killed in DC by gun violence. I do not see the media covering any of those on the same scale; the silence is eeiry. Rather than making gun control more effective, our country’s elected politicans such as Representative Hunter (R-CA) are bartering DC resident’s rights to have elected representatives in Congress in exchange for abolishing DC’s gun control laws. Another display of arrogance by our country’s elected representative is the failure to recognize the rights of all human beings, including some who need their rights protected more than others. They simply cross out individuals rights on paper because they’re doing what’s popular, not what’s right. For instance, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) now says it’s wrong to discriminate based on a person’s sexual preference. However, Congress simply crossed out transexuals and gender questioning individuals’ rights– making it acceptable for employers to discriminate on these individuals. Ignornace runs rampant everywhere in our country, whether it’s about gun violence or the rights of individuals and the need to protect them.

This is about a group of deaf kids who did something stupid and the world heard about it thanks to the media. Sadly, the day the world heard Gallaudet and MSSD this time isn’t as rosy as we would like it to be.

By: auntdot

auntdot — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 01:42:41 +0000

i don’t see where these kids are being protected from truth or consequences in this situation. if we believe what we read, they’ve all been expelled and relinquished back to the communities from which they came; presumably those places are silent and lonley. expulsion is a serious consequence and there’s no escaping that.

By: KJ

KJ — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 19:33:16 +0000

People may not know what these hateful words means, but they KNOW that it hurts people’s feelings. They KNOW. I’ve seen how a student would say that s/he wasn’t aware of the very fact that “nigger” is a hateful term, next thing I learn is that the very same student continued to use the word toward many students and continue to deny that. Honestly, with these classes, would it truly make a difference? For example, the true stories of Remember the Titans, Freedom Writers, Lean on Me, and Stand By Me use the very same example that people praise about: Leadership to get through people’s head in the most unorthodox way, where it really hurts white people’s feelings and actually get them to THINK and UNDERSTAND. Even though the schools praise those people who stood against many, my question: Why aren’t teachers or students praise that way in Deaf schools? Maybe that’s what’s the problem is, those people who have actually tried, they’d get fired for even trying. Or they were being put in fear and change their thinking: “I wanna keep my job to be able to pay for my bills.” or “Why should I even try when everyone would attack me regardless without support from administration?”

About the history, literature, math, or so on.. I feel that every classes should use every person, regardless of race, to portray diversity. For example, Nicholas Sparks, Nathan McCall, Beverly Daniel Tatum , Bill Cosby, Ayn Rand, Richard Wright, Malcolm X….. Who are the actual millionaires, in diversity… who are the inventors of different technology… Or… better yet… actually introduce the writings of diverse of high school age authors?

The other weakness is the family… let’s talk about that… “When I ask my college students, ‘How many of you grew up in neighborhoods where most of the people were from the same racial group as your own?’ almost every hand goes up. There is still a great deal of social segregation in our communities. Consequently, most of the early information we receive about ‘others’-people racially, religiously, or socioeconomically different from ourselves-does not come as result of firsthand experience. The secondhand information we do receive has been often distorted, shaped by cultural stereotypes, and left incomplete.’

Also, “Sometimes assumptions we make about others come not what we have been told or what we have seen on television or in books, but rather from what we have not been told.”

These passages rings true and written by Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum.

I’d like to know why parents would go in the length to blindly protect their children from the truth and/or consequences placed upon them? I have an answer for this: Parents are children too.

By: annonymous

annonymous — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 18:47:30 +0000

It definitely DOES begin w/ adults, white and black.Yes!! They need to inventory themselves, and admit their predjudice. Then,learn WHY they are predjudiced..
Next, again, I say, ” raise the child in the way he should go” It takes parental INTENTIONAL training in wiping out any racism, in each family. ( dream on,) but it does. It takes INTENTIONAL wwriting of courses for the child KG-12.in the schools.
Courses in the culture of the black race, for the black children as well as the whites, in the history of our country, and how we have treated others.and showing the children where we went wrong and how our behaviors can be changed. That is both for blacks and whites.
Courses, or readings for the children based on compassion, on understanding others, on recognizing that people are different, but all HUMAN. Social Studies is a good place to start. On the parents’ laps is the first place.
English classes can be used in conjunction with the Social Studies ones.
What is the average reading ability of those leaving 12th gradeat MSSD, or other Deaf schools? Have they been “reading for understanding?” Maybe it starts THERE, in the first place.
I really believe that the boys did not know the full meaning of those words. Did not begin to understand the basic history BEHIND those hate words.
So, I believe it begins from maybe even earlier than KG. INTENTIOAL training and…. living what they are trained. That’s a BIG job.

By: KJ

KJ — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 09:57:37 +0000

That’s the point, actually. In this country, we do have Black History month, movies on oppression, and fighting for equality. Books have been published already. Students, all of them will deny this, knew the purpose of it. However, yet, black students seemed to be still ashamed of the history, and white students seemed to ignore it. The title, “Why are all black kids sitting together in the cafeteria?” rings true. This is common for most schools in this country. My question to everyone, actually, what is it about the dark skin that freaks you out? What? Does the dark skin scare you? Does it make you feel different? Is it the very fact that what we have been seeing in DC, or where you grew up to see how black people were and thought they are all like that all over the world? You’re right, we all should go back to basics. Do you think the only way for this to succeed is to have adults to admit racism themselves? Black adults may admit that they still automatically oppress themselves by looking upon white people’s success? White people may admit that they automatically deny black people’s existence? Does it begin with adults? I’m wondering because if adults won’t admit this, then students may continue to deny this as well? Or simply, apathy grew greater than we ever imagine?