I'm not sure if anyone's still on this thread, but I just happened to catch it. Brown v. Board of Education was something idealistic, it presumed that people would take over from then on and enforce it. It was also a quick fix, borne of good will, true, but something like full scale integration required and still does immense acculturation and change of public opinion.

Being not from this country, I cannot but shudder to think that such a measure was passed only 40 years ago. Reparations must be made, and past atoned for. I would never think that the justices' decision implied inferiority of the black students or teachers, but rather concentrated on providing the same platform for launching the american success story, as follows education, employment, and promotion.

I've been reading a little about urban politics, and actually, the post WWII flight of wealthy from the city to the suburbs made the city centre economically unhealthy. A rapidly shrinking tax base for one might've contributed to the current situation of schools in largely black inner city neighbourhoods. The reason the ethnic concentration was such is because opressed for centuries, they had not the community infrastructure or any advantages of other groups to advance themselves in the mainstream path of success. And to expect something like that to happen in a hundredth of the time it took other immigrant groups to achieve that was ludicrous.

I seem to have met a lot of people lately that have given up on integration as an antiquated goal. I'm not saying people are cannot be valued on their own merits but rather when doing what "whites" do and being with them, it is rather that I believe everybody to be equal, and nothing should hold anyone back in their comfort zone or what have you. People are people, period. And it is still a valid goal.

I know I can be excessively forceful in my opinion sometimes, but I mean no offense to anyone, as I'm trying my hardest to learn.

love and respect

taSha