So Many Commonalities between  the Alabama Clergymen who wrote to Dr. King, his response and the Fight for Equality of Educational Opportunities for Children of Color in Chicago Public Schools

The Alabama Clergymen of both hues and many religious affiliations were concerned that Dr. King was overstepping his bounds by coming to Alabama, pointing out its racism, and engaging in direct action activities to seek equality for Negroes, when the clergymen and other reformers of Alabama were working on “a new constructive and realistic approach” to the problem. 

The problem, as Dr. King saw it was injustice to the Negro people as evidenced by humiliating racial signs, “blasted hopes and the dark shadow of a deep disappointment.”    Unlike the Alabama clergymen who called for King to recognize the White and Negro expertise existing among them, some Chicago residents and right thinking people everywhere, clergymen included, believe that the knowledge and expertise that CPS, White, Black and Latino Board members and administrators, offer as the solution to inequitable education (the closing of schools) is misguided, ill- conceived and wrong. And only serves to exacerbate inequality in public education.

The Jewish Solidarity and Action for Schools (JSAS) put it best: “…. that while CPS’s ill-conceived and destabilizing reforms put some children at risk more than others, the resistance will come from people of all ages, races, and neighborhoods.” Citing the disproportionate effect of the school closings on African American and Latino neighborhoods, JSAS expressed outrage at the racism inherent in the school closings.  “These discriminatory school closings fly in the face of our Jewish and human values…The proposed school closings would exacerbate inequity, particularly along lines of race and class. They would undermine the promise of our education system to be open to all of us, no matter what neighborhood we live in… Although injustice may not affect all of us equally, we all must struggle together for our liberation.” As King noted in his letter, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” “…..Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly.”

The Alabama clergymen urged the Negro community of Birmingham to withdraw their support and unite to work peacefully for a “better Birmingham”.  King responded by telling the clergymen that talks and negotiations for a better Birmingham had yielded broken promises and after weeks and months, no change in the inequities visited upon the Negro citizens of Birmingham.

CPS has also made some promises of a better CPS after the schools close: “Every child in every neighborhood in Chicago deserves access to a high quality education that prepares them to succeed in life. For too long, however, children in certain parts of Chicago have been cheated out of the resources they need to succeed in the classroom because they are in underutilized, under-resourced schools. By consolidating these schools, we can focus on safely getting every child into a better performing school close to their home. Each welcoming school will have the things that parents, teachers and CPS agree students need—a library, air conditioning, dramatic technology upgrades, and counseling and social work support. Consolidating schools is the best way to make sure all of our city's students get the resources they need to learn and succeed.” Never mind that it will take a significant bond issue for CPS to pay for all of these promises; all of the children being affected are not going to better performing schools; and many of these same children have heard these promises before! King indicated that the reason he was in Alabama was that too often the promises of  a better situation were broken and injustice continued. Noted historian, Timuel Black,  in his letter to the mayor of Chicago, who runs the schools, asked for a better future than that promised if CPS closes schools and said that he was proud to see a resurgence of a movement for “justice in education. So what next? Lest we forget, Jesse Jackson, Jr. said it first, but even Condoleezza Rice agreed, public education is the civil rights issue of our day.  If we believe in equality of educational opportunity for all children, then we must treat it as such and act.  Our children can’t wait. As Dr. King said at Oberlin College in 1964, “The time is always right to do what’s right.”  So why are we not rushing to support legislation mandating a moratorium on closing schools in Chicago? Again, Dr. King was prophetic: behavior cannot be legislated, but legislation can restrain you.  Let’s demand no less than a moratorium on all school closings until decisions made by CPS include a real understanding of equality of educational opportunity for the more than 85% of the students that make up the billion dollar Chicago Public School Corporation.