Black Families
Gregory Morris
Course: 2215 Black Families in the U.S. Fall 2013
Dorothy Smith- Ruiz, Ph.D.
Paper 1
Brown v. The Board of Education Fifty nine years after Brown v. the Board of Education, ask yourself are things progressively better for African Americans? Do we now live in a post racial society; were African- Americans receiving racial equality? Are African- Americans subjected to the same economic opportunities as their white counter parts, and is educational obtainment equal for both groups? These are a few questions that America has struggled with before Brown v. The Board of education, and as many scholar suggest may still be struggling with. President O’ Bama, and Martin Luther King in their speeches to the nation both suggested that these questions still remain unanswered. Charles Hamilton Houston was referred to as “The man who killed Jim Crow”. He decided to wage his fight for racial equality within the realm of the school system. During this era schools were segregated, offering facilities to blacks that were inferior to white schools. They had access to a limited amount of text books, and Teachers’ salaries were less than that of their white colleagues. In 1954 Charles Houston orchestrated a land mark case called Brown v. The Board of Education, this case set a precedent that not only said that schools were separate and unequal, but helped Blacks make monumental gains in employment, housing, and moved them closer to racial equality. Despite these gains, present day African Americans are experiencing astronomical high school dropout rates. Four out of every ten Blacks do not receive their high school diploma. In the economic arena currently African- Americans have an astounding unemployment rate of 12.4%. To put this in perspective Whites presently have an unemployment rate of 7.6%. Economic mobility for blacks has become more difficult, and the wealth divide has placed extreme hardships on African Americans. The purpose of this essay is to
Course: 2215 Black Families in the U.S. Fall 2013
Dorothy Smith- Ruiz, Ph.D.
Paper 1
Brown v. The Board of Education Fifty nine years after Brown v. the Board of Education, ask yourself are things progressively better for African Americans? Do we now live in a post racial society; were African- Americans receiving racial equality? Are African- Americans subjected to the same economic opportunities as their white counter parts, and is educational obtainment equal for both groups? These are a few questions that America has struggled with before Brown v. The Board of education, and as many scholar suggest may still be struggling with. President O’ Bama, and Martin Luther King in their speeches to the nation both suggested that these questions still remain unanswered. Charles Hamilton Houston was referred to as “The man who killed Jim Crow”. He decided to wage his fight for racial equality within the realm of the school system. During this era schools were segregated, offering facilities to blacks that were inferior to white schools. They had access to a limited amount of text books, and Teachers’ salaries were less than that of their white colleagues. In 1954 Charles Houston orchestrated a land mark case called Brown v. The Board of Education, this case set a precedent that not only said that schools were separate and unequal, but helped Blacks make monumental gains in employment, housing, and moved them closer to racial equality. Despite these gains, present day African Americans are experiencing astronomical high school dropout rates. Four out of every ten Blacks do not receive their high school diploma. In the economic arena currently African- Americans have an astounding unemployment rate of 12.4%. To put this in perspective Whites presently have an unemployment rate of 7.6%. Economic mobility for blacks has become more difficult, and the wealth divide has placed extreme hardships on African Americans. The purpose of this essay is to