Saturday, March 28, 2009
Security!!!
"Three of the five African Amercan men working with children in the school are responsible for discipline. Each has impressive physiques, as if body size is a part of the job description. The figure whose job it is to strike fear in the hearts of children in school is epitomized by the intimidating physical presence of the African American male." Hold the phone. Before we accept this as gospel, let's pick this statement apart. First of all, What kind of schools are we talking about here. If they are urban schools, then is it any wonder that most of the security guards are black. This is just a reflection of the community in which these schools operate, and furthermore, I would say that having these men in schools is more of an asset than a liability. Some of the coolest people in my school were security guards, and in some cases they knew the students better than the teachers did. Is it so bad that we're using African Amercans to discipline African Americans? We can sit here and talk about diversity till we're blue in the face, but the fact of the matter is that many people just feel more comfortable around people who look like them. We already have an abundance of white people in society serving as diciplinarians, they're called cops, and many people will tell you that minorities don't always hold the plice in the highest regard. By the way, body size IS a part of the job description. Have you seen the size of these kids lately; I don't know what they're putting in milk, but restassured I'd be more comfortable putiing discipline in the hands of someone who is 6ft and not 5ft. The African American male is not an intimidating figure simply because society makes him out to be this way, but because many lack the sufficient information to form their own opinion.
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I would have to agree and disagree with your post. In the school that I am student teaching, all the "disciplinarians" or security are large african american males. And yes this makes sense that they would work at an urban school because they live in the area. However, almost all of the teachers are white and i doubt most of them live in the neighborhood. I think it would be a much better situation as far as positive role models if black students had black teachers to look up to rather than people who are there to punish them. I understand your arguement, but I think maybe it does send the wrong message to these kids when the only adult figures at the school they relate to in terms of ethnicity are the ones that are there for the purpose of punishing them.
ReplyDeleteWhile Chris raises a good point, there's also the simple issue of availability to take into account. It would be great if we could fill schools with teachers who matched the students' ethnicities. However, it takes a lot more training to become a teacher than to be a security guard - and just look at the ratio of white to black students in the education program at UWM, a school that focuses on urban education. It's likely much easier to find someone qualified to be a security guard than it is to find a certified teacher. Now, this is probably the result of all sorts of inequities in other areas, which should definitely be addressed - but the school itself isn't necessarily in a position to address them, and shouldn't be blamed for doing what it can with the existing situation.
ReplyDeleteThis is a tricky issue. I understand both sides of the point. Certainly there could be an issue of availability for hiring security guards. And I certainly don't think Ferguson is suggesting that the schools should only hire white security guards to deal with this issue. I think she is saying that the African-American security guards reflect, and reinforce, the societal perception that links African-American maleness to physical power and violence. It's not just in schools that we see this. Consider our media representations. Even in our local news, the "Black male" is the universal suspect.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Ferguson would probably be much happier if there were more African-American teachers to balance out the image. But saying that there aren't any available does not answer the questions. Perhaps we should consider why there aren't more African-American teachers. Maybe it's because of exactly what Ferguson is saying, that the African-American students, as a whole, are more likely to be considered trouble makers and unsalvageable in the first place.