21st Century Segregation: Inverting King’s Dream
EducationJan 12, 2011Brian Jones has asked us to pause during the 2011 MLK Day to consider King’s reaction to the achievement gap that persists well into the twenty-first century, suggesting that education policy begun under George W. Bush—No Child Left Behind (NCLB)—and accelerated under Barack Obama works against King’s dream.
As Jones mentions, political leaders are apt to quote King selectively, focusing on King’s words that serve their political and ideological purposes—Republican and Democrats alike. I agree with Jones, and suggest we spend more time and energy on the challenges from King in 1967 that Jones recommends.
I also recommend that we place King’s messages in the context of today’s public claims coming from the new reformers, including