Transcripts For KQED Frontline 20140716 : comparemela.com

A teenager who made the most of her middle school moment. I am incredibly proud of your accomplishments. Oh, miss miller youre gonna make me cry narrator two powerful stories. One exclusive hour of frontline. Frontlinis made possible by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. And by the corporation for public broadcasting. Major support for frontliis provided by the john d. And catherine t. Macarthur foundation, committed to building a more just, verdant and peaceful world. More information is available at macfound. Org. Additional support is provided by the park foundation, dedicated to heightening Public Awareness of critical issues. The ford foundation, working with visionaries on the front lines of social change worldwide. At fordfoundation. Org. The wyncote foundation. And by the frontline journalism fund, with major support from jon and jo ann hagler. And Additional Support from susan hunter and Douglas Watson and the orfalea foundation. Caleb. Caleb. Come on, get up. Narrator Nikki Dangerfield is a single mother with four children. She works long hours as a fedex manager. I get up at the crack of dawn and sometimes i dont get home from work until 6 00, 7 00, maybe 8 00. And then cook dinner, talk to the kids, and then sometimes im talking to them but halfway sleeping. Its like, okay, mama, go to bed. So yes, im very busy, but im only busy for them. You got your workbook . I cannot pay for an education, but i would like for them to get the best Public Education that they could. Narrator half a century ago, her childrens Educational Options would have been limited by their skin color. Baton rouge, like most of the south, had a segregated School System. But after a hardfought civil rights battle, her children now have alternatives to the struggling schools in their own neighborhood. As a whole, i feel that the Public School system has done right by my family. Bye, mom, love you. I love you, too. Have a good day. You, too. Narrator every morning before dawn, the dangerfield kids wait for buses that will carry them to integrated schools throughout baton rouge. I think the benefit of the kids going to schools with different cultures, with children that have different economic backgrounds, they see a better life and they can say, okay, what can i do to have a better life . They can dream bigger. These schools are some of the worst schools in the country. Theyre some of the most violent schools in the country. Nobody is getting educated in these schools. Narrator but not everyone is happy with how busing has changed the schools here. What have they done . Where is their plan to better the schools . Narrator fed up with what they say are dangerous, failing and mismanaged schools, a group of residents has come up with a radical plan. The line actually comes down here. Narrator theyve begun a movement to form an entirely new city out of a large area of suburban neighborhoods, taking part of the East Baton Rouge Parish School System with them. You know, thank you for coming out tonight. voice breaking i see these children here. Thats why were here. These children right here are why were here. Ebrs failed our children for 30plus years. Narrator the new city would be called st. George and would be whiter and more affluent than baton rouge. And starting right here, with this petition right here, we have the opportunity to make a difference. We can do it. So come on up and sign the petition. Thank you. applause weve had enough of failing our children. Were not going to do it anymore, and well go to the length of creating our own city, to create our own education system, to take control back from the status quo. Hey, over here, look the fight hasnt even started yet. The powers that be will do everything that they can do to make this not happen. Narrator it will take roughly 18,000 signatures to get the idea on a ballot, and the group hopes to achieve that by the end of 2014. The idea of breaking away and forming a new School District. Narrator around the country, movements like the one in baton rouge have been spreading over the past several years. There is talk of secession in east dallas. And the city of pelham is thinking about declaring its independence from the Shelby County School System. They say their city should have control over their own schools. Narrator in city after city, parents dissatisfied with their Public School districts are trying to break away. I think it would help out a lot if we, you know, broke off and became our own district. Narrator the goal is to create smaller, Community Oriented School Systems. The city of brookhaven is acting in their own best interest. Narrator but the result is often School Districts that are less racially and economically diverse. They are carving out a section of town that is wealthier and whiter than what they are leaving behind. Narrator critics are concerned that decades after the civil rights victories of the 1960s, the era of School Integration may be coming to an end. If Martin Luther king were to come back and see where we are now, i think he would be shocked to see that the schools are actually more segregated than they were when he died. Narrator professor orfield says that a series of Supreme Court rulings have eroded much of the progress made since the landmark brown v. Board of education decision 60 years ago. The Supreme Court really began to turn backwards decisively on desegregation in 1991. So basically, that began the dismantling of desegregation plans across the country. And almost all of the larger ones have now been dismantled in our big cities. Narrator in baton rouge, the desegregation order was lifted in 2003. The student population is now 11 white, and many in the School District are concerned that number will drop even lower if the st. George proposal succeeds. And that is not fair to the children who remain behind. Narrator belinda davis, a local activist with three children in the baton rouge schools, is vowing to prevent the creation of the new city of st. George. You are automatically going to be creating a city that is less diverse than the one you are leaving, and we have all kinds of Specialized Services in schools that we are able to provide because of the size of our School District. All of that is in jeopardy if this new School System is created. There are about 6,696 students that will be displaced if the new city School District is created. I mean, this is about lives. This is about potential that we are squashing by continuing to carve up our School District. That we could do wonderful things together. Were stronger as one than we are broken up into pieces. Narrator among those fighting to keep the School District intact is baton rouge mayor kip holden. We do not allow a small group of people to divide us, weaken our capital city, bankrupt our future. Narrator but he faces stiff opposition from some of his constituents. Thank you all for the opportunity to address you, and im free to answer any questions that you have. Yes, sir. I was watching the news one night and they had you on tv that you are opposed to this area becoming a st. George city. Yes, sir. And the question is, why would you want to oppose letting the people of this area vote on that issue . Well, because first of all, baton rouge has come too far as a united city. Im against division when its not needed. The city of st. George will still be in the parish of East Baton Rouge Parish. It will not be separating. Well, it will separate in this sense. The plan thats out there will be trying to take money allocated for the whole parish and operate their city. Narrator holden says that the School District relies on the taxes paid by the more affluent neighborhoods now trying to break away, and that without that money, the schools will suffer. What will happen is that the city of baton rouge would have to stand alone. They would not be able to siphon money from the other cities outside of baton rouge thats being paid into the parish. It will be segregated along race lines and class lines. It is going to be devastating to the School System as a whole. A lot of the poor areas will not be receiving the same quality education. Are you saying were supplementing these people right now . Yes. Were supplementing them that be in trouble . Were supplementing each other. I came from a poor background, but yet it was the fact that i was introduced to a broader range of people and things that allowed me to get out of those poor circumstances up to where i am now. I think the frustration lies in the fact that people are fed up with this money that im talking about getting put into the city revenue stream, and were not getting the return on it. Were trying to tell people, you know, its time for us to stick together. Weve come too far. Too much progress has been made to turn that clock back. Narrator to understand what the two sides are fighting over, it helps to look at woodlawn high. Its story is the same as thousands of others. When it was founded in 1949, most of its 286 students lived nearby, and they were all white. How has woodlawn changed over the years . I think all you need to do is go down the hallway by the gym and see the different senior class pictures, and youre going to see the increase in diversity. Thats the main difference that i see, is just greater representation of all peoples in society here. Narrator today, woodlawn has over 1,200 students, and its population is around 60 african american. The school has special programs for gifted and talented students. These are nondiluted acids. Narrator theres an orchestra and marching band. band playing advanced placement classes. And a popular football team. But schools in the district have also been struggling. Around 40 of them are rated d or f, and the state has taken over part of the School System. Woodlawn also has its share of problems. Were a crated school. We made some gains last year. Were excited that were going to probably make some gains this year. Obviously we want to be a b and we want to ultimately be an a. Im proud of what were doing here. Lets go, clear the halls narrator that progress isnt enough for norman browning, the leader of the st. George campaign. Our children arent getting an education. Theyre failing our children because our children are not getting the education they deserve. Narrator browning says that years of busing stemming from the Civil Rights Era have destroyed the sense of community for a lot of baton rouge schools. Parents want schools that their children can go to in their neighborhood. Im against transporting children out of the neighborhoods to go clear across town to go to school. I can look back to my school years, the neighborhood schools, and being sent to the principals office, and the principal saying, boy, you want me to call your daddy . You know, because you know what . I knew he knew my father. Its about bringing community back. Its about bringing schools back to our community. Narrator he is no stranger to woodlawn high. Close to 15 years, ive volunteer coached at woodlawn high school. So my involvement with this campaign really stems from what i saw from the inside the lack of control in the classrooms, the lack of control in the halls. Narrator the school has been plagued with discipline issues 61 arrests in 2013. These are the things that just totally disrupt other students who are there to get an education. Narrator students have even posted videos of fights on youtube. kids shouting brownings group seized on them in a scathing ad. The principal doesnt have the proper people in there to control the students. Theyre babysitting them. Theyre not educating them. Theyre babysitting them. Weve been described as a zoo, even. When you put 1,200 kids in a building with over 90 faculty members, youre going to have conflict. Thats part of. Thats the nature of it. So i take offense to people who say this is a dangerous school, and i really get a little upset when individuals from outside our school characterize us that way and theyve never stepped foot in our school. Well, im a parent of two kids in Public Schools. Im concerned about discipline also. That doesnt mean i want to essentially secede from the union. I want to, you know, work with the principal, work with the parents, and lets see what the problems are. Narrator Domoine Rutledge is the School Districts attorney and was involved in baton rouges desegregation efforts. He says the schools overall have been improving, and its not busing thats been a problem; its that white families have been leaving. You know, its a question of almost which came first, the chicken or the egg. Because without the forced busing, you probably would not have had the white flight. However, you probably would have still had, for too long a period of time, a system that was not desegregated, which was the mandate. Weve got to desegregate these schools, and weve got to have everybody embrace the concept that regardless of color, we can go to School Together and get along and get educated. Narrator thats exactly the opportunity Nikki Dangerfields kids are taking advantage of. She says the East Baton Rouge Parish School System may not be perfect, but it gives them options. My three boys go to three different middle schools, the reason being each school caters to them. Aaron is in the Gifted Program. He goes to one of the middle schools. They have the best Gifted Program in baton rouge. Zephaniah goes to a school that has smaller classroom settings because thats what he needs. Caleb is in performing arts, so he goes to mckinley middle. That is a performing arts school. Narrator but if the new city of st. George happens, many of the districts schools would become part of it, including woodlawn high, which is where aaron would like to go because despite its problems, its rated better than the high school in his neighborhood. Id like to go to woodlawn high because it has a Gifted Program and a football team, so i can be able to play High School Football at the same time as i focus on my work in school. I want a high school that has sports programs and has, like, science programs and technology programs. Narrator dangerfields oldest daughter, joy, was her high school valedictorian. Today, shes a student at lsu. My mom was talking to me about the School Choices for my little brother aaron, and, you know, she was telling me how much he wanted to attend woodlawn high. You cant master the game unless you put it on allmadden. My mom talked to the secretary, and she explained to her that, you know, he couldnt attend that school because he doesnt live in that area and then that they were pulling away. And so she told my little brother aaron and he was really upset because he was, like, well, mom, thats the only school i want to go to. If st. George happened, theyre going to take the better schools with them. Youre no longer giving other kids a choice. Narrator its not just that kids like aaron wouldnt be able to enroll at woodlawn; theres fear that some students already enrolled there, many of them poor and minorities, could be asked to leave. I would assume that if boundaries change, there may be some students who would no longer attend this school. Certainly as principal of woodlawn high school, i want to attract students to our school as opposed to losing any students. So it would be. It would be sad. Im sorry. Because as principal, you grow attached to every student you have, and i would hate to see anyone leave. So the saddest thing to me would be for kids to not have the opportunity to express their own opinions about where they want to go to school. East baton rouge parish was probably the best Public School system in the 60s and early 70s. Narrator state senator bodi white has already helped another neighborhood split off and form its own School System. Hes a longtime opponent of federally mandated busing. The federal government, through their actions, i think the forced busing, it just destroyed the School System. Narrator the fight to desegregate the baton rouge schools was one of the longest in the nation. For 15 years, beginning in 1981, the School District was forced to bus its children to achieve integration. And ill use me as an example. I had a choice to put my fiveyearold daughter on a school bus and give her an hour bus ride to a school that was two to three years behind the National Average in testing. Busing children forced the middle class and upper middle class families to drop out of Public Education. You saw a mass exodus of white families from the School System. Unfortunately, too many of them decided, we fear the unknown and were not going to do it. Narrator today, while there is no federally forced busing, parents can still have their children bused to better schools around baton rouge. W