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Many in Massachusetts remember or have studied the horrible stories of school desegregation in Boston. I didn’t grow up here but experienced a different kind of desegregation when I lived in Arlington, Virginia in the mid-1960s. In the fall of 1965, I started eighth grade at Gunston Junior High School. The previous year Gunston had been 90-95% white students, as were four of the other five junior high schools in Arlington at the time.

There was one junior high school in the Green Valley section of Arlington that was 90-95% Black students. Of course, that school had been allowed to fall into significant disrepair, so when Virginia schools were finally ordered to desegregate, the school serving Black students was closed and those students were bused to the adjoining white schools (note – it was only the Black students who experienced busing, because their school had been neglected and eventually torn down). Interestingly, school administrators held no meetings of students or parents in preparation – probably to avoid confrontations with white parents – I just showed up in September and the 8th grade class was now almost 50-50 Black and white students!

The next city over from Arlington is Alexandria which took a similar approach to desegregation (rarely is what occurred considered to have been “integration’), which is reported as mostly accurately portrayed in the movie, ‘Remember the Titans.’

Alexandria consolidated its high schools into one high school, T.C. Williams High School (unbelievably named for a segregationist school superintendent from the 1950s. Alexandria only just voted to rename the school in December). I had white friends who attended T.C. Williams the year they integrated, which was also 1965. In both cities, to no one’s surprise, while there was a lot of racial tension and fighting in the schools, there was far more difficulty among the adults then there were among the students.

‘Remember the Titans’ portrays sports, football in particular, as a potential bond for students and possibly a school and community at large, but that was over-dramatized. I remember the local Pop Warner football and Little League baseball teams being all white as the coaches and local business sponsors resisted Black players joining. Fortunately, there were teams on the other side of the city that were not white-only teams.

I was a preteen, so I had no idea of the importance of that time. And I know for most of you the 1960s is ancient history, but I encourage you to ask family members who were alive then about any experiences they had with desegregation, here or elsewhere in the country.

It tells the story of something that’s really going on right now, and even before the pandemic and during this pandemic,” said Donald Faison, who played Petey Jones. “We’re still dealing with fear in America.”

While the adults had the more difficult time with desegregation, a wonderful benefit that I experienced was not only having Black classmates and teammates but having Black teachers and coaches. I have many memories of the great role models for us as kids – similar to the coaches reflected (somewhat accurately as reported) in ‘Remember the Titans.’ The movie story lines were overdone to create drama, but the reality of the tone and tension is 100% true.

I hope we can all invest the time to learn more about desegregation, and Black History in America – all 402 years since the first slave ships arrived – as we strive to hold ourselves more accountable to pursing a more just and equitable world.

Read more about school desegregation here:

Washington Post – When a Va. County closed its schools rather than admit Black students

ESPN – Two decades later, ‘Remember the Titans’ is still relevant

The Atlantic – The lasting legacy of the busing crisis

Washington Post – Petey Jones, star on ‘Remember the Titans’ football team, dies at 65.

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Director of People and Culture, Chief Diversity Officer

Have you ever tried to learn another language? It’s hard! So why is it that multilingualism is demeaned by certain groups and celebrated by others?

It’s called privilege. A recent tweet pointed out the double standard with the simple question “What’s considered classy if you’re poor but trashy if you’re rich?” The question garnered hundreds of comments including “Speaking two languages.”

The answers revealed more than a double standard – they revealed how people wear privilege differently. It’s glorified when privileged people to speak two languages but demeaned when people without privilege are multilingual.

Often racist policies and stereotypes are meant to otherize and devalue groups for who they are even if it contradicts itself. Immigration policies welcome refugees when they are from the former Soviet Union, but ban them if they are from Syria or Central America. The backlash to English as a second language (ESL) and English-language learner programs (ELL) are in contrast to the coveted spots in full immersion schools.

Today I ask you to appreciate multilingualism. Try to learn another language. If you already speak another language, wear it loud and proud. I invite you to add it to your email signature, business card, LinkedIn profile, etc. Do you speak a language most Americans don’t know? Be loud and proud and let people know. Don’t recognize a language in someone’s email signature or resume? Google it! You’ll find that there are more than 7,000 languages spoken in the world today.

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On July 17th Civil Rights leader and Congressman, John Lewis passed away. He was the last remaining March on Washington speaker where Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. Lewis’ legacy is a lifetime of anti-racist actions.

Learn about him the sacrifices he made to secure voting rights for Black Americans. Start by reading the late Congressman’s biography and find out why he was often called “one of the most courageous persons the Civil Rights Movement ever produced,” “the conscience of the U.S. Congress,” and “a genuine American hero and moral leader who commands widespread respect in the chamber.”

Watch the documentary “John Lewis: Good Trouble,” the movie “Selma,” read his autobiography “Walking with the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement.” Google his speeches including the historic oration the then 23-year-old gave at the 1963 March on Washington and find out why he was urged to edit his original version.

Then follow his example and get in “good trouble.”

Then honor his legacy by requesting your mail-in ballot for November and calling the Senate Majority leader’s office at (202) 224-2541 to ask for the restoration of the Voting Rights Act.

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Black-owned businesses have long been shut out of capital, loans and lines of credit due to discriminatory practices and systemic defunding of Black communities. Attempts by black business owners to generate wealth have been met with resistance and violence. In 1921, a mob of white vigilantes burned 35 city blocks, killed 300 black people and injured 800 in the Greenwood District of Tulsa, an area known as Black Wall St. Over the course of two days Black Wall St., one of the most affluent African-American communities in the United States, was destroyed during the race riot known as the Tulsa Massacre of 1921.

Black-owned businesses continue to face barriers that put them at a financial disadvantage. Most recently, during the COVID-19 crisis that has disproportionately impacted Black communities, black business owners were unable to access federal loans through the Paycheck Protection Program. The small business program was run through private banks, making it more difficult for Black-owned businesses to receive loans as well-resourced businesses jumped to the head of the line. While adjustments have since been to help minority and women-owned businesses secure funding, the aid has not come quick enough as 41 percent of Black-owned businesses have closed since February compared to 17 percent of white-owned businesses.

Black-owned businesses need your support now. What can you do? Shop, eat and advocate for Black-owned businesses in your neighborhood, city and state. Click here for a list of websites and apps including the Official Black Wall Street.

Resources for Black-owned business in the Greater Boston area:

Black Economic Council of Massachusetts

A List of 50+ Black-Owned Restaurants in Boston 

Crowd-Sourced Spreadsheet of Over 150 Black-Owned Businesses

List of Black-Owned Companies in the Boston Area

Here’s a Running List of Black-Owned Businesses to Support in Greater Boston

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