Final Thoughts
After completing my reading of The Shame of the Nation by Jonathan Kozol, I have compiled a small handful of thoughts about the composition of the novel, the topics and arguments that were presented, and the subjects of apartheid education and racism as a whole.
As I have indulged in the majority of my previous blog posts, I live an amazingly blessed life. I have been given everything I have ever asked for and more, perhaps undeservingly, I live in a prosperous town with a very successful school system, including enough funding for a dozen or more sports teams, an abundance of clubs and extracurriculars, and well-maintained facilities. This has been the standard since I was very young, so I have grown up taking my schooling for granted, and assuming that most people have received the same quality of education as me. In this way, I was shocked overall at the evidence presented in the novel.
My biggest takeaway after reading Jonathan Kozol's work is that there is so much that I, and all of the white children in America, don't know and will never be exposed to. Whether this is a result of our race or the choices that our parents have made is up for debate, but it is indisputable that we will never have a remotely similar experience to those shared by children in segregated schools across the country.
Reading about rat infestations, lead poisoning, literal closet-sized offices, and the overall lack of care and resources allotted to these schools is baffling to me, and while there is not much that I can do currently, I am very interested in pursuing this issue in the future. The lack of support from local governments to these schools, detailed in the later chapters, is baffling to me in contrast with the dedicated school board that ensures that the needs of me and my peers are met. Kozol's words have sparked curiosity, frustration, and fury inside of me that apartheid education still exists in the America that I am proud to live in today.
As I have indulged in the majority of my previous blog posts, I live an amazingly blessed life. I have been given everything I have ever asked for and more, perhaps undeservingly, I live in a prosperous town with a very successful school system, including enough funding for a dozen or more sports teams, an abundance of clubs and extracurriculars, and well-maintained facilities. This has been the standard since I was very young, so I have grown up taking my schooling for granted, and assuming that most people have received the same quality of education as me. In this way, I was shocked overall at the evidence presented in the novel.
My biggest takeaway after reading Jonathan Kozol's work is that there is so much that I, and all of the white children in America, don't know and will never be exposed to. Whether this is a result of our race or the choices that our parents have made is up for debate, but it is indisputable that we will never have a remotely similar experience to those shared by children in segregated schools across the country.
Reading about rat infestations, lead poisoning, literal closet-sized offices, and the overall lack of care and resources allotted to these schools is baffling to me, and while there is not much that I can do currently, I am very interested in pursuing this issue in the future. The lack of support from local governments to these schools, detailed in the later chapters, is baffling to me in contrast with the dedicated school board that ensures that the needs of me and my peers are met. Kozol's words have sparked curiosity, frustration, and fury inside of me that apartheid education still exists in the America that I am proud to live in today.
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