Shaker Heights: The Struggle for Integration

An excerpt from a one-hour documentary about how this suburb of Cleveland, Ohio deals with the achievement gap between black and white students in its high school. The background for the story is the community's 40-year history as one of the country's most progressive communities in the area of race relations. Produced by Stuart Math and broadcast nationally on PBS.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Shaker
• Heights
• Race
• Relations
• Integration
• Achievement
• Gap
• Suburbs
• Suburban
• PBS
• Documentary
• Stuart
• Math

[pauljosephp1]

It's clear in the statement of the second response; "We feel that the 'black students' in 'our school' have not been working up to 'their potential' and have not been achieving, and for that to be perceived as racist is simply unfair." presents several aspects of an issue merely being buoyed by numbers... 1) 'Our school' when used in the context of an argument of black vs. white infers one or the other collective...

[itcamefromthefuture]

@umtc2009 I'm Susan Murray in this video. I was one of 2 or 3 black students in AP math. Some of the guidance councilors at Shaker said that I belonged in "college prep" not AP math or honors. I am a college math teacher now. (I teach linear algebra & calculus.) At any rate-- they were *so wrong* about me. Others never even got the chance. I hope things are better now. There is more to this than saying "work harder" --everyone should get a chance. That is not happening now.

[itcamefromthefuture]

Susan Murray (Donovan) here. It was so great to work with you on this. I live the the Bronx now. I'm a college math teacher. Keep up the good work, Stuart!

[KingCast65]

PS: We were one of the first black families in Cleveland Heights, in 1970 there was exactly one black family in our area North of Severance Shopping Center, we were part of the racial steering case of Heights Community Congress vs.Hilltop Realty, so to say racism wasn't around is absolutely stupid. Of course it was, is, and always will be around, it is up to progressive people of all races and persuasions to address it and work to make a better future, duh.

-The KingCaster.

[KingCast65]

@jabroa I'm 45, grew up in Hawken, fooled around too much and my parents sent me to Heights for my last two years, $10K a year didn't sit so well with them for me to fuck around, so anyway yah there was plenty of racism in Shaker but not much at Hawken..... but the racism was different back then, it was more xenophobic because you had so few black families.... many of my friends lived in Shaker but I was insulated from much of the racism because of the caliber of my friends.... it's complex...

[DifangDuana]

If I see a bunch of F's on my report card, I would be too ashamed to bitch about it in front of everybody else. People nowadays have no shame.

[angryscottishdude]

i go to shaker and there is barely any racism and is like the least racist part of the country

[jabroa]

@umtc2009 I agree. I came from U.S. and took AP and Honors on my own. My so called guidance counsellor actually discouraged me from taking those classes, but I went against his advice. When I attended '83-'86, you were not "authentically Black" if you wanted to excel academically or didn't speak what I call "slum english." The ball has been in our court for decades, but the American Negro continues blame others for his/her deficiencies instead of playing the hell out of the hand they are dealt

[BROWNSAREAWFUL]

I graduated from Shaker by the skin of my teeth.I did so way back in '91.There were a mix of races and for the most part,I got along with everyone.Would I do it again? Hell no! Do I miss it? Hell Yes! Some of the best years of my life.Stay Strong Shaker,you were always there for me.

[JohnRhysMusician]

This type of black vs. white or hispanic vs. white or white vs. asian stuff is not isolated to Shaker. This is widespread across America. It mainly is an economic problem. Student acheivment from least to greatest is: black, hispanic, white, asian, and it is exactly the same order for average household income.