It's hard to believe, but in some parts of the South, there are still privately organized segregated proms. Sunday's NYT Magazine had a good article about the proms of one such high school in Montgomery County, GA.
“My best friend is white,” said one senior girl, a little glumly. “She’s in there. She’s real cool, but I don’t understand. If they can be in there, why can’t everybody else?”
It's a depressing state of affairs, but rather than moralizing, the story's writer, Sara Corbett, does an excellent job of capturing the tension between so-called tradition and social realities of the school. I recommend reading the whole thing. The audio slide show is also well worth watching.
3 comments:
You should forward this article to Chief Justice John Roberts, who, according to an article in last week's New Yorker, thinks racism is over.
"In a series of decisions in the past four years, the Chief Justice has expressed the view that the time has now passed when the Court should allow systemic remedies for racial discrimination."
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/05/25/090525fa_fact_toobin
Dear giddy little white girls of America,
If you and Barack Obama went to Montgomery County High School together, you would be forbidden to moon over him at prom.
Sincerely,
The Racism that John Roberts Says Doesn't Exist
Post a Comment