race-school-crispus-attucks-chicago-public.jpg

Race and School Inequalities

 

Photograph: The Crispus Attucks Public School in Chicago, IL, closed as of August 8, 2013 when this picture was taken.  As of 2017, according to AJ+, Inside Chicago Part 2The Racist History of Chicago's Housing Policies (AJ+, May 25, 2017) Chicago Public Schools is the country's fourth largest school district, 9% are white; most are black and Latino.  It has 20% of Illinois students, but receives only 15% of its education funding.  Photo credit: Steven Kevil | CC3.0, Wikimedia Commons. 

Introduction

Schooling inequalities cause opportunity gaps for students, which is especially apparent by race.

Messages and Resources

A series of blog posts where we explore how Christian (mostly Protestant) heresies started and continue to influence our modern political and racial challenges. This includes the very notion of race itself, and how our modern economics, housing, schooling, and policing systems have been shaped. Christians must take responsibility for these heresies in the framework of repentance.  We have designed a study guide to accompany the blog posts.  Please consider using it for personal reflection or discussion in your family, church, organization, etc. See especially:

Sangwon Yang and Mako Nagasawa, The Myth of Meritocracy in Schooling, Part 1

The Anastasis Center Blog, Nov 12, 2018. A 10 minute read. This post highlights the impact of resource inequality on educational outcomes and student experience.

Sangwon Yang and Mako Nagasawa, The Myth of Meritocracy in Schooling, Part 2

The Anastasis Center Blog, Nov 19, 2018. A 10 minute read. This post highlights the impact of resource inequality and racial-cultural dynamics on disciplinary outcomes and student experience.

A small group discussion guide to a few major issues in public schooling, and how church communities can partner with local schools. Topics include: school financing; residential segregation; whether charter schools should be able to fire students; the school-to-prison pipeline; and the honoring of teachers.

Children in the Early Church

Slides to a presentation summarizing the remarkable dignity that Christians perceived in children, who had no inherent dignity or status in pagan Greco-Roman cultures. This impacted views on infanticide, abortion, social welfare, and education. Based on outstanding research by O.M. Bakke, When Children Became People: The Birth of Childhood in Early Christianity.

Christian Restorative Justice: Beyond Charity - God's Restorative Justice for Children and Families

Slides to a presentation glancing at how Christians have historically supported children and their livelihood and development, such as for literacy and against child labor abuse.

Race and Schooling: Topics:

Race: Topics:

Church and Empire: Topics: