Episode 18: Pause to Ponder - Nice White Parents

Years ago, producer Chana Joffe-Walt started reporting on one school in New York. She thought the story was about segregation and inequality in public schools. But the more she looked into it, the more she realized she was witnessing something else. She was seeing the inordinate power of white parents at this school.

This episode shares three themes that presented themselves to me as I listened to this five-part series hosted by The New York Times Company - that very few people are willing to put in the work necessary to address equity; that equality means leveling the playing field and that usually translates to those with more typically receive less while those who have often received less begin to receive more (sacrifice for greater good); and that issues become real when they begin to impact those in power. 

This reflective piece highlights not just my struggle as an educational leader combating systemic issues of racism and oppression but with my own understanding of the often hidden forces driving these systems and my eventual acceptance these are more than just misguided notions.