There are, without a doubt, a countless number of controversial issues that we, as Americans, face on a regular basis. These issues (racism, sexism and poverty, to name a few) impact people all over America in different ways and with varying intensities. These issues have varied as time has gone on, and as we progress, so do our “social problems".
A common argument among the American people today is: “if it doesn’t affect me, why should I care?” This argument could mean, for example: If I have a roof over my head and food to eat, why should I have to help those who do not?
This argument comes up in every debate on human rights, and proves to be very common in an important issue that is often overlooked: every child’s right to a quality education.
Much of America’s youth have access to safe schools, quality textbooks and educators that care for them. These children have a safe home and guardians who encourage them, give them discipline and teach them about the importance of a good education. From an early age, most children are corrected when they are wrong and pointed in the right direction by adults who build their self-esteem and push them forward.
But what about the children who are not so lucky? Some of America’s youth are at a great disadvantage from the very beginning of their educational career; they do not grow up with a solid foundation at home and they lack parental support. Some of these children grow up in poverty and have no choice but to live in unsafe neighborhoods and attend poor educational institutions. Most of these children are minorities. Minority students have been proven, time and time again, to be at a great disadvantage when it comes to educational opportunities and equality.
Segregation, which is the “grandfather” issue in educational equality in schools, was declared unconstitutional in 1954 by the United States Supreme Court (Brown v. Board of Education); this is noted in history as a milestone in African-Americans’ fight for equality. The parents of these children, who had been through the thick of educational (and all types of) inequality, dreamed of a time where their children could have the same opportunities as their Caucasian counterparts. They were given hope after Brown v. Board of Education, but that was hardly how the situation would turn out.
A quote from the book, "Schooling Poor Minority Children: New Segregation in the Post-Brown Era," by Martha R. Bireda stands out to me here, where Bireda describes the desegregation as: “being bused to schools where [the African-American students] sensed they did not belong and… experienced outright hostility from students and… teachers.” Though, by law, these minority students were given the equal right to a quality education, the same discriminatory beliefs from those around them proved, and still prove, to be an issue.
In her book, Bireda also states that failure is sometimes viewed as “the norm for African- American students” and that they usually “dropped out early on and… ended up jobless, in menial jobs, or in the criminal justice system."
These people do not have equal employment opportunities, they consistently fall into academic and social hardship in school and an alarming number of poor and minority children grow up with a parent in prison.
Children look to their parents or guardians for cues: how to behave in public, how to talk, how to do almost everything. If the children growing up in broken homes are not told what is wrong, how will they know what is right? If they do not have a parent to stress how important education is, how will they know? If they have a parent in prison, who is to say they will not end up in prison as well?
The United States is home to the largest prison population in the world, at around 2.2 million. This large number directly affects the children that have a parent in prison; without a parent present to stress the importance of education and good behavior, these children often fall into bad grades, gangs and what’s known as the “school-to-prison pipeline.”
The “school-to-prison” pipeline is, very simply, sorting the “good students” and “bad students” from early on in school. Children with an unstable home life, children growing up in poverty—mostly minority children—are labeled “at-risk youth” and treated differently from their more privileged counterparts. All children will make poor choices or mistakes at some point; however, many believe that minority students are reprimanded harshly and sometimes suspended or expelled, while their white peers will receive less harsh punishment. This sends a message to minority children that they are “bad”, thus sending them down the path for “bad” kids: suspensions, expulsions, gangs and ultimately where the pipeline leads them: prison.
Because of this “school-to-prison” concept, these “at-risk” students are at a disadvantage from the very start. Since many of these children grow up in poor areas and attend schools that are very limited on funds, the resources that the school and community have to offer these children are very limited. These educators and schools are denying these children attention and encouragement because of their background, simply to focus that same attention and encouragement on children who are “more likely” to be successful. Some believe this is to potentially boost standardized testing scores or to simply prevent overpopulation in schools.
Many Americans fail to realize that the fight for racial equality is still an ongoing issue in America today. Martha Bireda states in her book, “the failure to provide first-class education for African-American and Latino students” is one of the “central civil rights issues of our time.” Though minorities may have the right to sit in the same classroom as their white neighbor, the discrimination and hardships that they will face puts them at a great disadvantage.
Many Americans will never have to worry about these issues: their children will receive proper love and discipline at home, they will receive praise and patience at school and they will be taught that they can “be anything” that they wish. They will not be labeled as disposable and “destined for prison.” Most children will never have to experience the disadvantages of being labeled “at-risk youth”.
This brings us back to the classic argument: if it does not directly affect my life or my children, why should I care?
The education of our children is important in ways that impact every single one of us: they are the future of our country. These children are the next doctors, lawyers, astronauts, artists and activists. They will determine our futures as we grow old and, consequently, influence the generations after ours. Therefore, it is the job of Americans to care for and guide our children down the right path, regardless of color, regardless of background and regardless of the labels society gives them.
This is only one issue that children encounter in their educational career. Please raise awareness on educational inequality—every child deserves a quality education and opportunity to be “whatever they want.”
