PAA Book Club

One of the key points we talked about was how to put into action some of the concerns we share about the impact of race and poverty on educational opportunity, the focus of our book club.

Dr. Thomas talked about the "slack" that cushions the lives of white people, who more often have resources that create a financial and personal safety net, while poor children of color, who are likely to live in much harsher circumstances, are "doubled down on" in school and life, told to have "grit," and actually required to live up to much higher standards of personal conduct and academic performance. He mentioned research that has found that employers prefer hiring white college drop outs over black college graduates. A new study found that wealthy black people are more likely to be incarcerated than poor white people.

His wish is that all children be given more "slack" in school and at home, to allow them to be children, to make mistakes and learn from them, and to be treated with patience. Every child's work should be "refrigerator worthy!"