Neptune High School graduates. Undated. Ocean Grove. Blogfinger photo by Jean Bredin.
By Paul Goldfinger, Editor@Blogfinger.net
Scene: driving through a residential area of Ft. Myers, Fla. The neighborhood consists of ranch style homes which cost about $700,000 due to the canals behind each home and due to the peaceful and promising environment. The homes are quite nice with pretty landscaping…well maintained. No cars were parked on the streets. It looked like a very comfortable place.
I went there early in the morning, about 8 am, when I saw only one man, Caucasian, walking a dog while carrying a cup of Joe.
I drove slowly as I approached a stop sign; a black Mercedes came around the corner and stopped. A boy, about age 10, got out and stepped onto the sidewalk. He was dressed in a white shirt tucked into gray short pants. He struck me as being sort of elegant in the way that he moved. I also noticed that he was black.
About 15 seconds later, a school bus rounded the same corner and stopped to pick him up. The Mercedes drove off.
This scene caused me to imagine a story about what I saw. I said to myself, “This boy has great promise, and his parents are making sure that he goes to the right school, no matter what the cost or issues which might arise.” I could be wrong, but that’s what I thought, and it stems back to when I was a young man as the Civil Rights movement began to unfold in the sixties.
I am aware that African-Americans sometimes have trouble finding good schools for their bright kids, especially in decrepit and worrisome neighborhoods. There was a documentary* which showed such parents attending a lottery for admission to outstanding public schools in New York. These kids almost all black, had promise and that’s why they were there, but most of them went home disappointed. Their whole life might be affected by the failure to win that lottery.
I saw Pres. Trump enable a beautiful young girl, African American, at the State of the Union, whose single mother was desperate for her to be admitted to a certain school, but she had failed to get in. The President announced that she would now be admitted, but anyone watching understood that this was symbolic and it wasn’t going to help so many others in that boat. I couldn’t understand why anyone would not support well-run charter schools, yet they are opposed by many on political grounds.
This is a perfect bipartisan issue, yet it is unfortunately very contentious, and society must place this high on the list of priorities.
So I drove off, turned on the radio, and changed the subject.
*”Waiting for Superman.” is a documentary which criticizes the American public education system by following several students as they strive to be accepted into competitive charter schools such as the Harlem Success Academy and Summit Preparatory Charter High School.
FRANK SINATRA: