Michelle Rhee and Race

It has been said quietly, amongst many African-Americans in Washington D.C., ever since Michelle Rhee took over as Chancellor of Public Schools, that she had been brought in to shake things up. It has also been said amongst many of the same people (people I have spoken to) that she was trying to do it as "the new white person" meaning, she is doing what a white person cannot do because she is Asian, and a person of color as well, a minority so to speak. It was a dicey allegation when I heard it, and Rhee, who is intelligent, and seemingly well intentioned, certainly doesn't come across that way. However, more than one person said it, in fact, many said it.

Yet, it is likely now that the racial drums will beat louder now because of two events: the improvement in math test scores amongst D.C. Public Schools, and Rhee's rather coy comments regarding the firing of an African-American principal at Hardy Middle School in Washington D.C.

The first of these events is obvious: while test scores amongst students is up, the test scores of black students barely moved. Chancellor Rhee framed it that way but the very next day, The Washington Post, brought her back to earth. The most vulnerable group, the students who this is really all about, are not improving yet Rhee was happy about improved test scores. The subtle implication: oh, those are just the blacks, they're stupid anyway.

The second event, the firing of Patrick Pope, principal at Hardy Middle School also has racial implications though not as obvious. Hardy, for the record, is located in Georgetown, one of the more affluent areas of the city, and an area with a high concentration of whites. The children, though they are located near pretty good public schools, don't attend these schools. Rhee wants to change that. In addition, at a contentious meeting regarding the firing, Rhee's attempt to align herself with the neighborhood parents, crashed and burned on the policy runway. Her knowledge of the situation, according to reports, was awkward.

In the end, many concluded that Rhee simply wants to do something; what that is, no one seems to know. Parents of black students think it is racial.

While no one can really know, to suggest that race played no part in decisions involving a school system that is still mostly black is corrupt. It would better for Chancellor Rhee to deal the cards straight and not try to cup cards and cheat to win. Whites have been pouring back into the city for a decade now and the city's racial make-up is flipping. This is a fact. It would only follow that white families seeking to stay would want the racial make-up of their schools to begin to reflect the city's racial make-up. To assert otherwise is a bad reflection on anyone. The real shame is, the schools are awful but now that whites are returning to the city, there is finally some real talk of change. Too late for so many black children with diplomas who can't even read, I guess.