CAN DETROIT READ?

HOW FREEDOM SCHOOLS IMPACTED THE 1960S AND 2017

BY ALEXANDRA ROBBIE ROBINSON
WHAT EXACTLY IS THE PROBLEM?

THEN NOW
Segregation in public spaces, specifically in Detroits illiteracy and lack of educational
schools, creating a classism and racial preparation for children of color.
divide.

According to the results of the 2015 National Assessment of Educational Progress tests published
by the Department of Educations National Center for Educational Statistics: only 4 percent of
Detroit public school eighth graders are proficient in math and only 7 percent in reading.
SURELY WERE THE EXCEPTION, NOT THE RULE

Not exactly.

Nationwide, only 33 percent of public-school eighth graders scored proficient or better in

reading in 2015 and only 32 percent scored proficient or better in mathematics.

Two thirds of the children in our country dont meet the standard for reading, writing, and
arithmetic skills.
WHAT DO WE DO ABOUT IT?

Before getting into the solution for Detroits literacy issues, its important to acknowledge
who makes Detroit.

Statistically speaking according to the U.S.

Consensus Reporter, Detroit is 79%
African American, 2% Asian American, 7%
Latinx American, and 10% white
Americans.

Provided by the Census Reporter Website https://censusreporter.org/profiles/16000US2622000-detroit-mi/

WHAT DO WE DO ABOUT IT?

The crew at Focus: HOPEs Children Center recommend revitalizing Freedom Schools.

Focus: HOPE is an organization with initiatives that include Food Programs that provide
41,000 low-income seniors with monthly food packages and tax preparation, as well as
high-quality career training and pre-apprenticeships, and programs toward breaking cyclical
poverty and impacting the community by providing better education for children to create
economic opportunities to transform their environments.
WHAT DO WE DO ABOUT IT?

What are Freedom Schools?

In the 1960s freedom schools in Mississippi were a temporary educational alternative

during the civil rights movement to lead to success in achieving social, political, and
economic equality for African Americans in the U.S. Today, Focus: HOPEs Freedom
Schools run 6 week educational programs to target illiteracy and foster a love for learning
and bettering the community.
WILL THEY WORK?

The evidence seems to suggest so.

Project director Claricha Evans explains Weve seen results in increasing reading levels
because we do a pre- and post-assessment at the end and weve seen as much as 10
months of reading level growth in six weeks (Lewis). In other words, that is a school years
worth of teaching in a little over a month.
WHY ARE THEY NECESSARY?

Consider this quote from the second page of the Kerner Report.

What white Americans have never fully understood but what the African American can
never forget--is that white society is deeply implicated in the ghetto. White institutions
created it, white institutions maintain it, and white society condones it It is time to make
good the promises of American democracy to all citizens-urban and rural, white and black,
Spanish-surname, American Indian, and every minority group.
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

Lets analyze this. Think of the time of the Ossian Sweet case. In 1925, a well educated
African American doctor moves into the city, defends himself against his racist neighbors,
goes to trial, and still lives a hard life after being found not guilty. More African Americans
move into Detroit, white flight occurs, thus homes in once white neighborhoods are left
decaying. People outside of Detroit look in with unease or even disgust. As the destruction
of the urban forms of Detroit increases, the civil treatment of minorities gets no better.
Specifically speaking, African Americans are denied the right to necessities like education.
What the development of Freedom Schools aims for is what the last sentence in the
Kerner quote addresses: American democracy to all citizens.
 FREEDOM SCHOOLS MAKE A
DIFFERENCE

Photo: Ninth grade students are seen in a segregated classroom in

Summerton, S.C., in 1954. (AP Photo/Rudolph Faircloth)

Students including Charles Potts strike a pose at a line in a song,

"Something inside so strong" during the morning 'Harambee'
session. (Photo: Daniel Mears / The Detroit News)
 Comments like
Obviously there is an age difference to explain for the lack of enthusiasm in the children on
the left, but imagine if they had the opportunity to go to a freedom school in their youth.
Somewhere they could foster a love for their education, grow their self esteem, and be
encouraged to care about their community.
The children on the left were subject to segregation because of government stipulations. The
children on the right were given the ability to chose what kind of education they want and are
encouraged to pursue it.
IT GETS WORSE BEFORE IT GETS BETTER

In addition to the children being undereducated to begin with, staying in school poses a
challenge.

Only 38% of Detroits young adults were graduating from high school in 2009 due to
suspension or expulsion. 21,298 young people aged 7-17 were arrested and lost incredible
amounts of school time. Of these high schoolers, only 4.3% participated in aggravated
assault to receive the consequence they were issued (Thompson 49).
FREEDOM SCHOOLS ARE A REAL RESOLUTION

As stated by the Western Journal of Black Studies,

[Freedom Schools] provide children of color with the knowledge and mentoring
required for success in an often racially hostile environment, a variation of grassroots
efforts have been created throughout history. Today these schools combat the lack of
attention given to school-aged Black children in educational and social settings.

The schools were structured to motivate young people to become engaged in their
communities and to help them identify and design solutions to local issues.
HOW DOES AN OLD
SOLUTION CURE A NEW
PROBLEM?
If Freedom Schools originated in the Civil Rights Movement, what does
that have to do with Detroit in 2017? What happened between the
1960s and now? After 1973, the redevelopment of Detroit is attributed
to Coleman Young. As mayor, Young had many impressive projects to
rebuild the business class but sadly ignored the distressed neighborhoods
through the city by trying to attract upper-income white families.
Unemployment, crime, and drug abuse were not tackled. Since then, it no
substantial change has been made to better the real civilians living in the
city. Thus the Freedom Schools still stand as an empowering force and
educational tool to the marginalized 79% of Detroit. Freedom Schools do
not counteract issues like crime directly, but the support and knowledge
they supply becomes the instruments children grow with to make better
decisions.
INTO THE FUTURE

Focus: HOPEs Freedom School aims to have 100% educationally prepared, self-sufficient
Detroit youths by 2031, but the positive effects are already notable. As reported by the
Detroit News, parents and children alike enjoy the guest readers, motivational songs, and
group activities that boosts their diversity and individuality.

Based upon the racial tension that exists within the city, as well as internationally, Freedom
Schools will be relevant long past solving Detroits reading issues.
OUR CITY IS A CLASSIC

As Dean Herron has taught us, Detroit is a classic. Classics

themselves dont change, but the lessons coming from them
do. Rather than a source of hope to look to, they can also be
warnings for a future we dont want. We dont want Detroit
to continue growing into two societies, white vs people of
color. Segrue says unresolved past relationships will keep
coming back, thus there is no sense in trying to be designer
and abandon the past. We need to learn from it, like the civil
rights movement, and find freedom from acknowledging the
wrongs and making them right.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Census Profile: Detroit, MI. Census Reporter, U.S. Census, 2016, censusreporter.org/profiles/16000US2622000-
detroit-mi/. 22 Nov. 2017.
Green, Dari. "Freedom Schools for the Twenty-First Century." Western Journal of Black Studies 38.3 (2014): 163-
76. ProQuest. Web. 21 Nov. 2017.
Herron, Jerry. 1967. HON 1000 Mass Lecture. HON 1000 Mass Lecture, 13 Nov. 2017, Detroit, General
Lectures. 25 Nov. 2017.
Jeffrey, Terence P. Detroit Public Schools: 93% Not Proficient in Reading; 96% Not Proficient in Math. CNS
News, CNS, 28 Oct. 2015, www.cnsnews.com/news/article/terence-p-jeffrey/detroit-public-schools-93-
not-proficient-reading-96-not-proficient. 22 Nov. 2017.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

The Kerner Report. 1968 REPORT OF THE NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMISSION ON CIVIL DISORDERS, 29 Feb.
1968, p. 2., www.eisenhowerfoundation.org/docs/kerner.pdf. 22 Nov. 2017.
Lewis, Shawn D. Freedom School Aims to Help Detroit Kids Beat the Odds. Detroit News, DetroitNews, 25 J
une 2016, www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2016/06/25/freedom-school-
detroit/86392012/. 22 Nov. 2017.
Thomas, June Manning. Redevelopment and State of the City. Redevelopment and Race, pp. 168177. 25 Nov.
2017. 25 Nov. 2017.
Thompson, Heather. The Criminalization of Detroit Schools. Unmaking The Motor City, HeinOnline, 2015, pp.
4849. 25 Nov. 2017.