From the article: "In hindsight, this field trip could have been approached and arranged in a better way," Madison wrote. "But as I reflect upon the look of excitement, enthusiasm and energy that I saw in these children's eyes as they stood in the presence of a renowned African American rocket scientist in a very successful position, it gave the kids an opportunity to see this type of achievement is possible for even them.

And we know, of course, that this message would have been utterly spoiled had a single white student (or any non-black student) been physically present.

Dumbass.

Next week there will be a trip to McDonald's and Fashion Bug for the white children...you know, to show them the opportunities for advancement at these places...level the playing field...

I don't really have a problem with a blacks only field trip...this is the last generation that gets to wrap itself in victimhood though...

Once again, the progressives show themselves to be the true racists. Color blind is what you want to strive for - and what these people clearly fail to understand. Reverse discrimination is still discrimination, and sets a terrible example for the children.

Red: why does this generation still get to wrap itself in victimhood? Children now in primary school are already two generations removed from the racial struggles of the 1960s.

This generation gets to do it still because everyone else is doing that...I forsee major backlash accross the board, it may actually be fun to watch the destruction. I say this generation gets a pass because the next one that pulls that may be met with bloodshed.

I think that the best option is to pay reparations to the "black community". Anyone who is 1/16 the descendant of slaves is entitled.

Best case scenario, "hey, we paid reparations. You don't get anymore excuses."

Worst cases scenario, turns moderates into fanatics...complete anarchy pervades, America burns.

My family has never owned slaves and I can trace my antecedents (direct and parallel) as having fought in the war that ended slavery...I will be expecting a dividend...

Reparations - in which direction?

One of three Fred-articles on the subject of reparations

If you don't know Fred's writing, read his columns. Also the pieces he wrote while accompanying inner city cops on the beat. It's an unvarnished look at things that you aren't supposed to notice, much less talk about...

We all ready paid reperations, anyone ever hear of Liberia?

You know, like Red, I don't really have that big a problem with a black-kids-only field trip, but it doesn't sound like something that should have been an official school function. Maybe it could have been worked as a community club event of some kind, or maybe run through one or more of the local churches.

My problem with a black only school trip has more to do with the separation and exclusion of non-black children. Because the few black kids in the neighborhood you grew up in did ok for themselves is not the greatest argument though. The neighborhood I live in still does not have a black family living in it and I don't see it happening any time soon. Racism is still alive and well in many parts of the country. I don't claim to have the answer to it but to pretend it doesn't exist or that things are balanced and equal isn't correct either. I know the life isn't fair arguments are coming and the my family never owned a slave arguments too. Life isn't always fair, but are we all going to ignore the fact that blacks only got equal rights in my lifetime or is that the fault of single parents as well as everything else on this blog seems to be?

Don't they already get reparations a la welfare, subsidized housing, free health care, etc.? When does it end? Welfare was supposed to be a temporary help in times of need for all people, and not based on skin color. But the welfare state is now in its 5th generation, and there are some people who have never known any other way of life. That was not the intent, but that's how it turned out.

From the article: "'In hindsight, this field trip could have been approached and arranged in a better way,' Madison wrote. 'But ...."

Someone once jokingly told to always ignore everything before the "but" when someone talks like that.

In this instance, I think that is good advice; the preamble to the "but" is him bullshitting people with what he thinks they want to hear. His real feelings come after the "but".

I wonder how the school will be able to talk against racism the next time to subject will pop-up. When the people of authority favors the Black kid over all the other ones, the other kids don't think of "Social Justice". They are thinking that the Black Kid got the favor because he's Black. Racism is bred through education and I guess this very school is losing the sight on this very thing.

The solution is not to allow opportunities to only black kids. They live in Ann Arbor, I rather doubt they're underpriviledged. You want them to see opportunity? Take ALL the kids, or invite the rocket scientist and others in as speakers. Trust me, the black kids will still see the black skin, even if other kids are around.

If anything, this school is breeding racism, since the white kids see the black kids getting perks for being black. It's a gret way to make the white kids hate them.

I'm more than 1/16 choctaw. Do I get reparations? How the Irish-they were treated pretty crappily-do they get money? How about the chinese brought over as labor-are we paying them too? Fucking stupid.

Everybody learned something, but most learned what the school didn't intend to teach. Orwell had his date wrong, but nailed the rest, didn't he?

I don't know, i'd rather see this than the story I saw last year out West where they cut funding for science classes because black kids do worse in science. This is a lot better way to address the problem.

I don't see how this is that much different than your story about mother's day , just because it's for mothers doesn't mean it's bad for other women.

OTOH, I realize women now make up more college enrollments than men, and make higher salaries in urban environments than men, maybe due to programs like this aimed at encouraging women and none aimed at encouraging boys, so it can be overdone. But that doesn't mean the entire idea is bad.

"I have talked to the children who did not go on the field trip, and I think they have a better understanding of the purpose of the AA Lunch Bunch"

I wonder what he told them. The "better understanding" they now have may not be exactly as he intended.

But...don't the white kids need to see academically successful African Americans, too, so that they can have it reiterated again that assumptions about race are baseless and irresponsible? If we only show the black kids the black rocket scientist, how can we honestly blame a white kid who grows up to become a white adult who says "yeah, okay, black people aren't bad...but have you ever met a black rocket scientist?"

This is the sort of thing that a lot of Blacks trip up on. They don't recognize the line between sanctioned and non-sanctioned racism. But in their defense, it's typically whites who define the limits, and who'll then deny that they exist. So the rules often aren't clear, and usually aren't communicated candidly to blacks.

For instance if the principal had done this at a state university, it wouldn't be controversial. Universities are segregated. But public primary and secondary schools aren't. That's were he tripped up. But what he'd done is advocated 1000 times a day by the political and educational establishments, which is probably why he hadn't expected the reaction that he got.

Toubrouk and M4 hit the nail on the head... ""The intent of our field trip was not to segregate or exclude students". Bullshit. It was the intent because that's exactly what it accomplished. The rest of the story (which isn't in the article that Amy quotes from) is that the non-black kids were basically made to sit in detention and be lectured on how they deserved second-class status while the black kids went on the field trip. The lesson that was taught, inadvertently, is that racism is justifiable and that respect is something to be taken and granted by force of authority, rather than something to be earned.

Someone correct me if my data is wrong. But, I have seen data which shows a full 50% of blacks in the US live middle class or working class lives, and do not gang-bang nor deal drugs.

My best male friend here in Mexico is a doctor, and several years ago it became apparent he believes all blacks are ghetto druggies. So, I had a talk with him and he was shocked when I told him large numbers of blacks in the US have college degrees and work at middle class jobs, and live in middle-class neighborhoods in nice houses.

He thought I was joking at first. He gets his information from the US TV channels, of course.

"yeah, okay, black people aren't bad...but have you ever met a black rocket scientist?"

I am a rocket scientist and I don't think I've met a black rocket scientist. I wish the article had said who they were meeting with--perhaps a different field than mine.

Amy- thanks for this- I owe you a Cottage Inn pizza and a handful of tokens to Pinball Pete's!!!

I went to Clague Middle School in Ann Arbor back in '84-86. We went on a field trip to see Marcel Marceau (no shit! a junior high field trip!!) A bit over our heads, but consider this- these days it wouldn't fly because he was wearing whiteface, and that has such racist overtones, ya know.....

I graduated from Ann Arbor Huron in '89. Caucasian students were a minority, because the University of Michigan has created such a melting pot of the town. This was not a problem, but rather a source of pride back then. Apparently this asshat has UTTERLY MISSED that point. If you can't make it work in that city, it smacks of the cliche about leading a horse to water.

Honestly, I think I'm gonna be sick.

Oooooggghhhh....(drools,wipes chin)

For the uninitiated, culinary mecca: http://www.zingermans.com/

Ooooo...I see they have a bacon of the month club.

Squeeeee!!!!!

I've drilled and drilled into my two sons' heads that skin color does not matter. What we see from the outside does not matter. What people do does.
So a big ol' THANKS, to this principal and other morons like him who by their actions prove to my kids that mom is wrong and apparently skin color is all that matters.
Do these individuals not get that they have their hands in the pie when it comes to perpetuating racism? Are they totally missing the irony?

""In hindsight, this field trip could have been approached and arranged in a better way," Madison wrote. "But . . . . "

I hate these kinds of non-apologies. As if "I'm sorry you feel that way" is some sort of social balm. It seems the ability to sincerely apologize and own up to a mistake is the most often-ignored virtue. That this lack of responsibility is being publicly modelled by a school's principal is outrageous.

Flynne ["Don't they already get reparations a la welfare, subsidized housing, free health care, etc.? "], interesting perspective; but I have heard there are far more whites than blacks on welfare. Of course, there are far more whoites than blacks .. but I think even statistically speaking ...
As to the organizer's claim, "The intent of our field trip was not to segregate or exclude students.." Of course it was! the obvious and inesacapable consequences of one's actions are by definition intended.
I like the irish comment above - me too; i'll take a check for my great-grandparents being treated like cur dogs! And most of my ancestors arrived in the US too late to own slaves; so they fought to free them. I'm just sayin', is all.

Hi Amy,
I havent posted in awhile but this is BS. Had this been a group of white kids the NAACP,ACLU and Al Sharpton would have been over this like flys on s**t(sorry for the profantity).

So because this particular rocket scientist happens to be black they segragate the trip?

And people wonder why there is still a racial divide in this country.

"Of course, there are far more whoites than blacks .. but I think even statistically speaking ... "

I'd like to see a cite on that.

Eh, doesn't bother me. I wouldn't mind blacks being taken to see a famous black person, football players being taken to meet a famous football player, the drama club being taken to meet a famous actor or director, Christians being taken to some religious events, or whatever. Sometimes it isn't feasible to do it for the whole school, so you cater to an interest group or class or something.

I'm part Irish, too, my ancestors were sold into slavery in Barbados when they resisted Cromwell. But whatever. I don't think this field trip is on the same level as reparations. I mean, I remember Calculus-class-only field trips, for example.

Bottom line is that the guy actually intended something very positive. I'm not usually sympathetic to this kind of thing, but I got the feeling from his explaination, the way he spoke, assuming those are direct and accurate quotes, that he really wasn't thinking along the lines of obvious discrimination, holding white or other kids back. He was hoping this would inspire kids he think of as otherwise without hope or inspiration of their own.

In short I think he simply believed the other kids wouldn't get anything out of it. He went about this the wrong way, but it sounds like he was hoping to do something good.

I wouldn't call for his termination as I would someone with a more negative victim mindset. But if I were one of the parents, I'd sit down and discuss it with him like a rational adult and propose a reasonable alternative to support his aims.

Everyone should be able to hope for the future and appreciate the noble aspects of their heritage and history, as well as take a lesson from its darker periods.

I don't like what he did, but I like the spirit in which he did it, he's naive really, in that he just didn't see his own injustice, but I hold out some hope that this might be a noble educator some time in the future.

M4, I think he meant in the U.S. I just looked on the Census Bureau site, and in the 2000 census, blacks made up 12.3% of the U.S. population.

NicoleK, I believe that's confusing the definition of the word "interest". People of the same skin color do not make up an interest group, because a person's skin color does not determine what their interests are. Had the field trip been for all of the students interested in science (and assuming that the other students would not have been put into detention while the science students were gone), it would have been non-controversial. The school made not one but two assumptions based entirely on skin color: that the students were not interested in seeing someone a different color than themselves, and that the scientist in question was only interested in speaking to students the same color as him. I take it from the writeup that the scientist in question was male; by that logic, shouldn't the female students have been excluded?

I'm white, and I fit into the public perception of a "rocket scientist"; I'm an aerospace systems engineer. Suppose I volunteered to speak at a school field trip, and then the school informed me that since I'm white, only white students would be permitted to attend. Of course, I would be obligated to withdraw. Even overlooking the underlying moral issues, which I'm not, the fact is that if I went ahead with it so as not to disappoint the kids, and then someone found out, there would be severe career and personal repercussions for me.

"Bottom line is that the guy actually intended something very positive. "

Bullshit. I'm not an educator, but even I know that one of the first lessons in Schoolteaching 101 has to be that you don't arbitrarily divide students up and reward one group and punish the other. Not unless you aspire to someday be in charge of a concentration camp. There is absolutely no way that anything positive can come out of this little stunt. One group gets an over-inflated sense of self-worth, the other group gets the KKK telling them, "See, we told you so". It's elementary, if you'll pardon the pun. Either the principal is an idiot, or he's a race hustler; in either case, he has no business being any closer to a school than a liquor store does.

NO, I meant I want a cite that fewer blacks are on welfare than whites. I can't imagine that's true per capita, and I rather doubt it's even true for sheer numbers.

Here we go:

raits of families on AFDC (1)

Race
--------------
White 38.8%
Black 37.2
Hispanic 17.8
Asian 2.8
Other 3.4

Time on AFDC
---------------------------
Less than 7 months 19.0%
7 to 12 months 15.2
One to two years 19.3
Two to five years 26.9
Over five years 19.6

Number of children
-------------------
One 43.2%
Two 30.7
Three 15.8
Four or more 10.3

Age of Mother
------------------
Teenager 7.6%
20 - 29 47.9
30 - 39 32.7
40 or older 11.8

Status of Father 1973 1992
-------------------------------------
Divorced or separated 46.5% 28.6
Deceased 5.0 1.6
Unemployed or Disabled 14.3 9.0
Not married to mother 31.5 55.3
Other or Unknown 2.7 5.5
Notes on teenagers

As the statistics show, teenage mothers comprise a very small part of the welfare population.

So yes, there are (barely) more whites on welfare, but it's a much lower percentage per capita.

"Anyone who is 1/16 the descendant of slaves is entitled."

My family's Irish. Pay me, English dog!

"So yes, there are (barely) more whites on welfare, but it's a much lower percentage per capita."

Umm, you've messed up your terms. "Per capita" is exclusive of "percentage", because they are similar terms.

What is deceptive about this is that most reporting centers on crime, and blacks have up to ten times the crime rate as any other ethnic group, depending on the class of charge.

Mea culpa, Rad. Point remains.

Identity groups are often interest groups. I wouldn't object to a male bonding trip for the guys or a female bonding trip for the gals. Different groups have different interests. And yeah, obviously not all boys would be interested in a male bonding trip and someone would be bored. But so it goes.

It doesn't bother me, frankly. Of course, I went to an all-female college, so maybe I see things differently. I don't care if groups I'm not a part of have outings or clubs. Go for, I say.

If they took all the Irish-American kids to an Irish event that would be cool by me, too.

Or if they did any of these events for the whole school.

I think you are making a bigger deal out of it than it is.

Here is something to REALLY get worked up about:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36981179/ns/local_news-san_francisco_bay_area_ca/

American kids in America not allowed to wear American flags because it is a Mexican holiday. (They are allowed to on other days, just not Mexican holidays). Now THAT is bullshit.

mo4, I stand corrected - interesting stats! I think at the time I heard that, it was postulated that West Virginia skewed the national numbers.
Rad - "blacks have up to ten times the crime rate as any other ethnic group." There are some [not necessarily me- look at victim reporting rates] who will argue that that only proves police bias in making arrests. Again, I'm just sayin', is all .. .

This is, in principle, no different than Take your daughter to work day.

And just as offensive, for precisely the same reasons.

"There are some...who will argue that that only proves police bias in making arrests"

There's a simple, foolproof way around police bias accusations - count the corpses. Morgues in every big city in North America are filled with the bodies of dead young black men, murdered by other young black men. New York City is as good an example as any. Here is a murder map:

http://projects.nytimes.com/crime/homicides/map

It's a geographic display of data on all 3768 murders recorded in NYC from 2003 through 2009. Here are the race stats:

Victims: 61 % black, 27 % Hispanic, 8 % white, 3 % Asian

Perpetrators: 60 % black, 29 % Hispanic, 7 % white, 3 % Asian

According to the 2005/2007 American Community Survey conducted by the Census Bureau, the population of NYC was 44.1 % white, 25.2 % black.

If anyone wants to deny reality by claiming that all of the unsolved murders of blacks were committed by hooded Klansmen, or that the crystal-clear patterns for murder don't hold true for any other violent crimes, go ahead.

"I don't care if groups I'm not a part of have outings or clubs."

Really? Even with school tax dollars, during the school day? We're not talking about french club here. Would you be okey-dokey with all the white students going to visit Wall Street while the black ones stayed home and were told they had no business going? If not, why on earth should it be okay one way and not the other?

"Bottom line is that the guy actually intended something very positive."
...
"He went about this the wrong way, but it sounds like he was hoping to do something good."

Isn't that the case for every well-meaning, nut incompetent yutz who screws up other people's lives by overreaching, and then overreacting? Seriously. Look at nearly any abuse of power and you typically find some well-meaning person who *thought* they were doing the right thing.

Reading the Ann Arbor newspaper accounts of how he was yelling at a fifth grade girl who questioned his judgment, in front of her class, making her cry in the process, I would say it is time for this particular well-meaning man to take some time off. The guy apparently lost it in front of the class bad enough that a school counselor went to the classroom to help calm the classroom kids down after he got done barking at them.

After that, assuming it is an accurate account of things, I feel he can properly be reassigned to another job, organizing the transportation services department or some other role away from kids. The news accounts and reader comments from parents of kids in the class suggest this is not the first time this guy had been deemed a bit off.

My sense is he is not up to this job if he reacts to fifth graders questioning him by becoming domineering and hostile. I would make a lousy grade school prinicipal too, so it is not like I deem him a bad person for being a poor principal. He is just apparently in the wrong job. So, time to go.

"Isn't that the case for every well-meaning, nut incompetent yutz who screws up other people's lives by overreaching, and then overreacting? "

One of the best lines I ever heard on this was from a film about the life of Charlamagne. His mother had occasion to argue with his wife, angry over the positive treatment of his illegitimate son (favor of any kind opening him up to political intrigue against the throne as a viable figurehead) Anyway the wife said to the queen:

"Be careful, I am not a fool."

To which the queen answered:

"No...you're worse...you're well meaning."

-------------

Whoa, did NOT read about him yelling at a fifth grade girl. Screaching at the class that way, I wonder how many racists he made? Stuff like that can stay with kids for a long time.

Frankly I have to change my mind about the guy. The little bit I read made it sound as if he was just one of those slightly air headed hopefuls that figured that success is a given for nonblacks, but that black children needed to see something inspiring to give them hope. If he'd been that sort of fellow, yeah, I'd probably give him a pass on this one, sit down and explain things and try to bring him relatively gently back down to reality, not least by reminding him that those tax payer dollars are intended for universal education, not racial advancement. If he wants to fund a heritage day where kids can go see exhibits, shows, have speakers, or meet prominent adults that come from their heritage, I'm all for that. I'd also be all for having them go see each others to get a richer sense of how wide the world is. But the way this was executed was down right racist.

And his followup, screaming at kids who questioned his obviously flawed judgement, did not improve matters.

FIRE his ass.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/05/10/student-group-disbanded-blacks-field-trip/

URL name speaks for itself.

A well intended racism is still a RACISM

"This is, in principle, no different than Take your daughter to work day.

And just as offensive, for precisely the same reasons."

It's been changed to "Take your child to work day." Has been for at least a few years now.

Race
--------------
White 38.8%
Black 37.2
Hispanic 17.8
Asian 2.8
Other 3.4

This metric shows the percentage make-up of welfare recipients (it adds up to 100%).

That means this shows that 38% of welfare recipients are white, not that 38% of whites are on welfare.

Mom of 4... it evens out. People end up going on one field trip or another. I wouldn't mind white kids going on a trip if the theme was specifically white people and how they can make the world better or whatever the way it seems to have been with this one.

If we are talking about reparations, what about reparations for the families of all those dead Union soldiers who fought to free the slaves? Not only that, how about reparations for the northern slave owners in Maryland, Delaware, Missouri, Kansas, and western territories who did not rebel against the union and had their legal property taken without just compensation in violation of the fourth amendment. BTW, Brazil ended slavery without a war in 1888 with just compensation for owners. Also Saudi Arabia did not end slavery until 1962 and Mauritania did it in 2008. I say reparations all around. I want mine.

Mom of 4... it evens out. "

Think so? Think they've got a whites-only trip in the works? I somehow doubt it....

No one's mentioned this yet, but if we've established that whites are the dominant majority and blacks are a special-interest, privileged minority, then where does that leave everyone else? Is anyone planning special field trips for the Indian/Muslim/Native American/Asian kids at the school? What about a kid who's half-black? A quarter black? How black do you have to be to go on this special field trip?

Honestly, if a group of black high school students want to self-organize a extracurricular trip like this, then that's great. But imposing this upon elementary students just isn't cool. At that age, you're doing what the adults tell you. A 10 year old isn't going to be able to stand up and say "Hey this is wrong, and I'm not going unless everyone gets to come." Really, this is just straight-up racism. Completely unjustifiable.

jave paelas writes:

Whether it's watching movies like "Precious" where all the dark-skinned characters are evil and all the savior characters are lighter-skinned, or having to explain to my daughter at 2 years old that she's not inferior to white people because all of the main stream images from cartoons to pull-ups all have white princess on them, I am not surprised that many black kids hate themselves. Pinoy teachers of Louisiana along with AFT and LFT union members.