Fair ‘35
26th March 2018 · 0 Comments
By Edmund W. Lewis
Editor
Part II
It has often been said by ‘35 alumni and others in the community that the school has been “set up to fail.”
But why would anyone want to see a school that has meant so much to five generations of residents and former students fail miserably at preparing young Black minds to take on the world?
Why indeed.
Could it be in part because the school, despite its current woes, remains a source of pride for alumni and members of its extended family and challenges those in the community who think the public school system should do no more than prepare young people for lives of servitude in the hospitality or service industry or as warm bodies to fuel the growth of the prison-industrial complex?
Could it be that ‘35 continues to represent a strong, vibrant network of Black professionals who have not yet fully realized the awesome potential they represent when they bring all of their gifts, talents and resources together to achieve a common goal?
One thing that has become abundantly clear over the past decade in New Orleans is that the city has no plans of going back to the days when Black residents had any semblance of political or economic power, when they could pool their votes and other resources to select a mayor, council member or school board representative.
The white business community has been adamant about completely controlling everything that happens in New Orleans and is continually attacking Black residents on several fronts including land ownership, voting rights, income equality, affordable housing, adequate health care and access to quality education.
It has proven countless times that it is willing to risk a higher crime rate and a spike in gun violence if it means controlling the upward mobility and economic empowerment of people of color in New Orleans.
At a time when other cities and states are giving serious thought to authentic police, prison and sentencing reforms, the City of New Orleans is heavily invested in solidifying its reputation as the Mass Incarceration Capital of the World by crafting an even more draconian and unconstitutional police department and a criminal justice system that has no qualms about criminalizing and vilifying Black, Brown and poor people.
By definition and design, we have been deemed Public Enemy No. 1.
In recent times, there has been this shroud of secrecy about the public school system’s plans for local students in general and McDonogh 35 in particular. But why would anyone be so adamant about keeping plans for McDonogh 35 such a well-guarded secret?
Could it be because information is power and that he or who controls access to this information also has some level of control over the future of those who have a critical need for that information and those who cannot make sound decisions without seeing and fully understanding what they are up against?
The last thing we need to do is follow the lead of anyone who thinks it is a good idea to blindly trust some individual or entity outside of the ‘35 circle to do right by the school and its standards and alumni.
As a student of history, I know all too well how adversely impacted communities of color have been by backroom deals.
We must demand sunlight and transparency in the school system’s dealings with ‘35 and also demand that those plans put the school, its students and its legacy first.
I have been told by more than one of ‘35’s current teachers that the powers that be have forbade the school and its student body from jazzing up the school’s hallways with artwork that captures the spirit of the school and its legacy. Essentially, they have been forced to learn and work in an antiseptic environment kept drab and nondescript so that when some other entity gains control of the school it will have free rein to do what it pleases with its walls and hallways.
Even though there have been complaints about McDonogh 35 being an unsafe and sometimes volatile environment, students have been denied the right to document their experiences and bear witness to what they are forced to endure daily.
Likewise, a number of teachers have said that they have been forbidden to speak with the media about conditions at the school.
As a result, I have been told, many of the school’s teachers and students have completely given up hope of ever turning things around.
That’s unacceptable for anyone who has benefitted from the sterling example ‘35 has set for its alumni, extended family and residents in general.
As members of the Roneagle Nation (aka the Maroon & Gold Nation), we must invoke the spirit of our Beloved Ancestors from the Republic of Haiti, those brave warriors who fought and triumphed in the only successful slave revolution in the history of the world.
Like them and other enslaved Africans fighting for their liberation, we must form a maroon society from which we can launch a proper response to efforts by the powers that be to destroy McDonogh 35 and its rich legacy.
McDonogh 35 belongs to all of us, not just those who graduated from the institution or once walked its hallowed halls. It belongs to all of us because it has drawn inspiration from people in every part of the city and can trace its growth and development to the upward climb of people of African descent in this city.
I am because we are, and ‘35 exists to meet the needs and fulfill the hopes and dreams of all of us.
I am ‘35, but I am also Gilbert Academy, Xavier Prep. Booker T., Carter G. Woodson, Andrew J. Bell, Walter L. Cohen, Joseph S. Clark, Frederik Douglass and Rivers Frederick.
Although I never attended any of these schools, I have crossed paths often with folks who did and have been inspired and challenged by all of them. I, like all of us, am part of a dynamic, vast network of positivity, ingenuity and kinship.
I can therefore beam with pride when I hear the words Morehouse, Howard, Fisk, Tuskegee, Southern or Xavier. The spirit of these institutions and my spirit are inextricably linked forever.
I can smile and nod my head when I see St. Aug’s Marching 100 doing their thing in the Rose Bowl parade or some other national event and when I see Landry-Walker and Karr capture one state championship after another. Those are my nephews, nieces, sons and daughters out there doing their thing.
As much as I am moved by the successes of McDonogh 35 and its alumni, I am equally dismayed by the setbacks and challenges other schools like John F. Kennedy and John McDonogh endure in the city. Whether we choose to see it or not, we are all in this together.
None of us should have allowed the powers that be to shut down John F. Kennedy Senior High School after Hurricane Katrina, to make a mockery of John McDonogh Senior High School on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) or force L.B. Landry and O. Perry Walker senior high schools to merge.
The blatant disrespect, educational apartheid and glaring inequity must end.
As such, the time has come for all of the city’s alumni associations to come together and share what they know about those whose works and decisions have led to their triumphs and defeats, those in local government, state government and on school boards that have either helped these institutions or failed miserably to do so when called upon by those in need.
Let’s send them all a very clear message: You’re either working for us and our objectives or working against us’ and you will be dealt with accordingly.
We need to get very tunnel-minded about identifying state lawmakers, local and state school board members and other education officials who have consistently made moves that have been harmful to Black schools in this city and link our efforts with other alumni associations in other parts of the state who have faced similar obstacles.
Once we come together and identify the folks who are committed to doing the bidding of those who could not possibly care less about the future of Black schools, we need to come up with an operable plan for either neutralizing them or extricating them altogether.
We can no longer afford to allow the powers that be to divide and conquer us as we seek equal access to justice, decision-making power and quality public education.
Just as the opportunists and interlopers who forced charter schools on New Orleans were unapologetic about identifying and funding candidates to replace Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and Orleans Parish School Board officials who were fiercely committed to quality public education and fairness, we need to remove emotion from any campaign to send educational officials and state lawmakers packing.
We didn’t get into these dire straits overnight, nor will we find our way out of them easily. It is something we have to dedicate ourselves to, knowing that if we carry out the mission so eagerly embraced by past generations of ‘35 alumni and the faithful graduates of all of the city’s other great schools, things will get better by and by.
This article originally published in the March 26, 2018 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
