Recently, there have been some major changes in the school systems in Northeast Louisiana. These changes are just one example of the many reasons why this country is still in such turmoil when it comes to race.
A federal court judge ruled that Monroe City schools were not in compliance with the federal court order to desegregate the schools in the district. The superintendent for Monroe City Schools, Brent Vidrine, was forced to make major changes that ultimately stripped people from positions that they worked hard to achieve. If Vidrine did not do this, the courts threatened to fine $5,000 a day. Among the changes that have already been announced is the swapping of positions for Lynetta Coates, the curriculum coordinator at Carroll High School, and Patrick Taylor, the current principal. At Neville High School, Whitney Martin and Christella Dawson will also change positions, with Dawson becoming the new principal and Martin becoming her assistant. There have also been 17 teachers ordered to move from the Northside schools to the Southside schools and vice versa.
In the more rural areas of Northeast Louisiana, some schools no longer have junior highs because the children are bused to one common school with the intention of breaking down the line between "black schools" and "white schools". Despite all of these sudden changes, the board president, Rodney McFarland, has said that everyone has agreed to the swaps and will work together.
That's good news, right? It's good to hear that everyone will do their best, but do you know what this says about our nation? This, right here, so close to home, shows how and why there is still a race issue to this day. For starters, let me clarify that I am in no way, shape, form, or fashion racist. I don't think it matters what color your skin is, but the schools were not segregated. There is no segregation law. There are school zones. Who attends which school is all based on where people live. This has been made into an issue when it never was an issue to begin with. Honestly, I would be offended if I was just given a position based on my skin color. It's degrading. I believe in equality, which means I also believe that you work for what you have. If I apply for a job and someone who is not the same race as me applies for the same one, but has a higher education and better credentials than I do, then they should get the job. You shouldn't be handed anything in life. White, black, purple, orange... Who cares?
So, America, why don't we all just drop the race card and stop drawing barriers between ourselves? I think that would be great.
