Integration Failed, Now What?

TW: Black people are human beings 

I think we are at a decent point in history where we can start to deconstruct some of the outdated ideologies we still believe. America is overdue for a good history lesson. 

A good Black-washing of history. 

Integration was not widely received by everyone. The whole idea that all Black people wanted to go to white schools is a myth. Black people were tired of subpar facilities and some people felt that this was A way. Keep that in mind. 

Many people do not know contemporary Black history and that is by design. People do not know the full truth of the United States, they don’t know how to engage safely and effectively with the past, and they don’t know how important it is to know the truth of what has happened outside of what their grandmother told them. Black history is like any other study; you aren’t born knowing it. People think they can skip over it because of the way it has been systemically been devalued and hidden, but it shows when people combine half truths with partial truths and already disproven myths. Black history is vast and still unfolding. The story is constantly being rewritten. I’m definitely feeling the Black Renaissance era. Just because you may not know it does not mean it didn't happen. 

Integration in the way that it is commonly discussed here makes it seem like Black people were begging to get into white schools in order to be “equal” to them. When you look at the facts, Black people were trying to gain access to the resources white society systematically stole from them. Did you know white communities built their whites-only schools using tax dollars stolen from forcibly segregated Black communities? The same way white people profited from the forced labor of Black people during chattel slavery. ((And I hate that I have to make this disclaimer all the time, but when I am discussing white people, I do not mean all people with white skin. I mean people who identify with whiteness and white culture which is an inherently violent set of values and actions)). Check out my book recs tab if you need some help digesting that. 

Towards the end of his life, Dr. Martin Luther King said he was concerned we might be integrating into a burning house. Again, not all Black people were on board with the idea of sending their Black kids to hostile, racist, and cold white schools, and not all Black parents sent their students to white schools. I personally went to an all-Black school until the second grade, graduated from a historically Black college, and currently attend one. For middle school, I went to a school that was in the process of “diversifying” from being a majority white school and for high school I went to a predominantly Latinx public school. Oh, and I briefly attended a ~liberal~ PWI for graduate studies at one point. So I’ve had experiences in Black, white, and brown schools. I can say without a doubt that the highest quality education I’ve received by far has been at my Black schools. And it’s not because I’m Black. 

People of African descent see the world in totally different ways than “the West.” We have a more communal worldview, we see education as liberatory rather than oppressive, and we believe education should be useful. These critical philosophies and pedagogies are totally missing from PWIs and non-diverse spaces (yes, Black schools are diverse and no, you can’t be anti-Black and revolutionary BYE). Eurocentric schools prioritize control, subjugation, and oppression - full stop. That is their history and up until the second half of the twentieth century they were very proud of that. Why else were Black people literally not allowed to attend your favorite baby ivy-league until 60 years ago? Newsflash: 60 years isn’t that long ago. I’m sure you know someone who is 60+ years old. 

I’m not going to act like Black schools are perfect, but it does make the world of a difference when your school not only speaks to your history and experience, but also wants you there. When I attended PWIs, I was treated like a foreign creature. Like I was a subject to be dissected and scrutinized and not someone walking in my birthright and purpose as a scholar. I have a problem with that, and it bothers me that these places continue to act like they are the pinnacle of knowledge when they can’t even embrace difference. How smart can you really be? And the thing that bothers me about that is that they teach that only certain people are worthy of truth and knowledge and learning. They intentionally push people away from higher ed and attempt to diminish the value of education so that we don’t question beyond what’s needed to pass a class. It’s real insidious stuff. But there is a way forward. 

Education should be a part of everyday life. Everyday we should be challenging ourselves and learning something new. And it doesn’t have to be fancy. It can be reading and meditating on a chapter of a non-fiction book from my book rec reading list, browsing Black archives online, watching a Black professor speak on YouTube, attending a talk by a scholar at your nearby community college or library or bookstore. Get you a library card and get those e-books! You can start wherever you are and it doesn’t have to be expensive. Think about what you know and what you want to know, and don’t stop learning about it. Demand more diversity from your school or workplace or community organization. Start a reading club. Get that dictionary out and look up EVERY word you don’t know. If it sparks up a new idea, follow that train of thought and see where it leads you. People feel ashamed to learn new things and we’ve GOT to smash that taboo. The day you stop learning is the day you start decaying, and that proverb has two meanings. 

“Integration” or the existence and creation of truly diverse spaces will only work when all people and experiences are held in equal esteem. Quality education is not synonymous with white supremacist indoctrination. I want people to look to historically Black and intentionally anti-colonial, anti-oppressive, and anti-racist spaces of learning for ways to help bridge these divisions we have in our society. It starts with one talk, one seminar, one chapter, and these small changes add up! Let’s make this a Big Brain Summer or a Library Rat summer, something like that! My education gives me hope, and I hope my words give you hope too. 

Connect with us for more blog posts on topics in Black feminism, music, and history brought to you by Break the Seal Press, a womanist press dedicated to transforming the world through culturally empowering literature and grassroots activism founded by Spelman grad, musician, local herstorian, and writer, Jacqueline H. Brown-Gaines.  Follow @BreaktheSealPress on IG, FB, and Bluesky!! You can support this work by reading and sharing it, sending us a lil something @ $btspress on Cashapp or by purchasing my debut short story, Adventures with the Funk Haus Band, on this same website.

Adventures with the Funk Haus Band is an action-packed spell-binding short work of fiction for teen+ readers featuring all of the fun and the funk of the 93rd Malik College-Douglass University Classic. Told through the eyes of Sage, a sophomore tuba player in the band, readers get a first-hand look into Black college band life, legacy, friendship, and community. Consider donating copies that will go to under-resourced teens to help foster lifelong literacy and academic excellence!!