This hit home. I lived close to a school much like the one you describe, and there was no option on where to attend. My school, however, had the white kids bussed in to better the horrible outcomes. The best thing that came out of it was the magnet program they put in place as a sop to the white families - I managed to secure a spot in that class and it was a transformational opportunity to engage with ideas. In other classes it was crucial to keep your head down to avoid attracting attention - and violence. I remember a kid flicking a lighter under my sister’s long blond hair. I remember kids streaming out the door to chase me down with the intent to beat me up. I remember the black kids with their switchblades and the Asian kids with their nunchucks getting ready to fight after school. I remember desperately holding in my pee because you just didn’t go to the bathroom. So many humiliating and terrifying experiences. I’ve never forgotten any of them. Luxury beliefs indeed. The presence of those privileged bussed in white kids just exacerbated the already present racial tensions to a boiling point.
Thank you for this wonderful comment Jen. You illuminate as aspect of busing I know little about. I can relate with your experiences. Can you tell us about the white kids that were bused in from higher income neighborhoods? My feeling is that there were even higher income families that simply found a way out of this busing program. So who got bused to your school? Did you have much interaction with them? Do you have any idea what their parents did for work? What their economic situation was like? What was their reaction to it?
I don't know which aspect of Franklin High School the kids in the first article enjoyed but wow that certainly wasn't my experience. I recall these kids having nicer clothes - they were better dressed than I was. They didn't want to interact. They were the 'cool kids' who got to leave the neighborhood at the end of the day. I don't think they were the super-affluent though - there were plenty of majority white neighborhoods in Seattle, as the minorities tended to live on the south side, where we had our home. This article mentions several - I recall some buses coming from as far away as Mercer Island and Bellevue.
In the magnet program I mentioned, I did interact with some of the kids who were bussed. The class was I think entirely white and Asian. They seemed pretty normal to me - it was unusual for me to see white kids as we were a distinct minority at Franklin. It was mostly the material that I thrived on, as it was the first time I had actually been challenged to learn, think and do. For these kids, this academic environment was normal. For me, it was a highly infrequent experience. Most faculty in other classes just lectured over the noise and dumbed down the grading to pass along the students.
I was a bit of a class clown - it was a defense mechanism to deflect attention and deter violence. I remember being able to get my fellow students in the magnet class to laugh, but they never joined in...they were 'good' in school. They were good at school!
I can credit the exposure to kids who knew what school was for as an inspiration to me. So, there's that benefit.
Both of those articles were fantastic! Thank you. You might consider writing up your experience at Franklin on your Substack. There’s a half dozen good quotes in those article too you could splice in.
I probably should. I'll give it some thought. One last note - I heard Larry Elder discuss white flight on his radio program some years ago. I had to pull over. I had never heard anyone publically acknowledge the conditions that existed in schools before - or since. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIwXiFg2Gm4
This hit home. I lived close to a school much like the one you describe, and there was no option on where to attend. My school, however, had the white kids bussed in to better the horrible outcomes. The best thing that came out of it was the magnet program they put in place as a sop to the white families - I managed to secure a spot in that class and it was a transformational opportunity to engage with ideas. In other classes it was crucial to keep your head down to avoid attracting attention - and violence. I remember a kid flicking a lighter under my sister’s long blond hair. I remember kids streaming out the door to chase me down with the intent to beat me up. I remember the black kids with their switchblades and the Asian kids with their nunchucks getting ready to fight after school. I remember desperately holding in my pee because you just didn’t go to the bathroom. So many humiliating and terrifying experiences. I’ve never forgotten any of them. Luxury beliefs indeed. The presence of those privileged bussed in white kids just exacerbated the already present racial tensions to a boiling point.
Thank you for this wonderful comment Jen. You illuminate as aspect of busing I know little about. I can relate with your experiences. Can you tell us about the white kids that were bused in from higher income neighborhoods? My feeling is that there were even higher income families that simply found a way out of this busing program. So who got bused to your school? Did you have much interaction with them? Do you have any idea what their parents did for work? What their economic situation was like? What was their reaction to it?
I went digging around on the web to find some information about your question - check out this completely anodyne commentary: https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/seattle-once-bused-students-to-try-to-desegregate-its-schools-without-a-court-order-former-students-reflect-on-the-experiment/
And here's another reflection: https://www.historylink.org/File/3939
that discusses the Magnet programs.
I don't know which aspect of Franklin High School the kids in the first article enjoyed but wow that certainly wasn't my experience. I recall these kids having nicer clothes - they were better dressed than I was. They didn't want to interact. They were the 'cool kids' who got to leave the neighborhood at the end of the day. I don't think they were the super-affluent though - there were plenty of majority white neighborhoods in Seattle, as the minorities tended to live on the south side, where we had our home. This article mentions several - I recall some buses coming from as far away as Mercer Island and Bellevue.
In the magnet program I mentioned, I did interact with some of the kids who were bussed. The class was I think entirely white and Asian. They seemed pretty normal to me - it was unusual for me to see white kids as we were a distinct minority at Franklin. It was mostly the material that I thrived on, as it was the first time I had actually been challenged to learn, think and do. For these kids, this academic environment was normal. For me, it was a highly infrequent experience. Most faculty in other classes just lectured over the noise and dumbed down the grading to pass along the students.
I was a bit of a class clown - it was a defense mechanism to deflect attention and deter violence. I remember being able to get my fellow students in the magnet class to laugh, but they never joined in...they were 'good' in school. They were good at school!
I can credit the exposure to kids who knew what school was for as an inspiration to me. So, there's that benefit.
Both of those articles were fantastic! Thank you. You might consider writing up your experience at Franklin on your Substack. There’s a half dozen good quotes in those article too you could splice in.
I probably should. I'll give it some thought. One last note - I heard Larry Elder discuss white flight on his radio program some years ago. I had to pull over. I had never heard anyone publically acknowledge the conditions that existed in schools before - or since. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIwXiFg2Gm4
Great examples by Elder. Thank you.