Divisions, Segregation And Integration:

Divisions, Segregation and Integration: A Brief History by Ari Santas

Late 1600’s: servitude status shared and conjointly opposed to ruling elite Colonial Beginnings early 1700’s legal status changed by elite to divide English from African, “white” from “black”—a legal but not physical separation of thru… peoples early 1800’s racial division within shared physical space; creation of race consciousness (internalized superiority and oppression)

1860’s: Abolition of separate legal status is reconstructed, but race consciousness Slavery and the remains and grows beginning of Reconstruction 1870’s, 80’s, and “separate but equal” legal doctrine and practice is created to 90’s: Reconstruction hide equality of racial groups by selectively separating them into ends different physical spaces

The doctrine does not simply separate, but allows and encourages shared space when whites are in a superior 1950’s and 60’s: position and therefore reinforces race consciousness Civil Rights Movement legally mandated separation is outlawed, but race consciousness late 1960’s, 70’s and continues; Affirmative Action is created to combat entrenched 80’s: white flight into bigotry, but hidden segregation (as in the schools), self- suburbs and ghetto- segregation and economic inequalities replace legal mandate ization of inner cities 1980’s and 1990’s: Affirmative Action is attacked and scaled back, those allowed to “integrate” required to conform to white established models of intellect, ability and professionalism; desegregation becomes assimilation, and race consciousness becomes subliminal

2000’s Where to go from here? To be continued… Counter-Movements School Segregation and Desegregation: The Case of Valdosta/Lowndes County GA

During segregation days, there were distinctively all white and all black schools in Lowndes County. This is what the High Schools looked like:  In the county, there was Lowndes High, which was white, and Mt. Zion High, which was black (In the 60’s, Mt. Zion High was replaced by Westside High, also all black).  In the city, The was Valdosta High, all white, and Dasher High, all black (Dasher High was closed in the 50’s and Pinevale High was built to replace it, also all black) Although the Federal Supreme Court decision to desegregate the schools came in 1954, no efforts to “integrate” the schools in Georgia came until much later.  Instead, Georgia changed its state flag in 1956 to include the confederate battle emblem as a sign of defiance against the federal ruling. When schools did “desegregate” in Lowndes County, there was no bussing for years, and children would not go to schools outside their neighborhood unless their parents were willing and able to give them a ride. Up until the early 80’s, the schools were still mostly segregated. Running counter to the movement towards social equality was a resistance to change from the white power structure. When bussing began and students had to go to different schools, white resistance continued and the following events took place:  The black high schools either closed or turned into other schools  Pinvale High became a 9th grade center  Westside High became an alternative school  middle schools emerged for the first time  The black high school teachers and principles retired, were fired or reassigned to lower level schools  The white high schools integrated, but the classrooms inside became segregated through racial tracking  leveling, which never existed prior to integration, became the norm  white students were assigned to the higher level classes; black students went to the lower  the black classes were often located in older sections of the schools, while the white ones occupied the newer (SE Elem “joke” about heaven & hell)  all the black elementary schools in the county were closed down; teachers and principles retired, were fired or reassigned  Private all white schools began opening: Valwood, Open Bible, Morningside (Georgia Christian was also all white, but already existing)

The end result was that schools were still essentially segregated. Worse yet, now black role models for the black students were removed and a cultural buffer was destroyed. Internalized racism was given more openings through which to seep.