Race in Chicago: Remnants of the Brown Case Applied to the Segregation of the Burnside School

By Jonathan Wenegieme

A Senior Essay submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts in History

Colorado College

Colorado Springs, Colorado

May 2016

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Chicago has been known for its racial inequality in both its schools and in its local neighborhoods. The injustice towards black youth has recently been the repeated subject of crime in Chicago. Before what has been going on now, the African-American community had to witness their children being dealt the segregation that should have been dismissed in the Brown v. Board of Education case in 1954.

The neighborhood of Burnside in Chicago was one of the places where segregation needed physical action to fight it. Burnside is the smallest of the 77 community areas in Chicago, and it is located in Community Area 47. The Burnside

Elementary School, which is still active today, received much controversy due to the double shifts which occurred because of overcrowding due to European immigrants. A mix of immigrants and a high black population of students laid the seed to racism in the school. Faculty at the two biggest schools in the Burnside area, Beard Elementary and

Dever Elementary, were 88.3% white. Most of the other schools in the area also had more than 50% percent of a white faculty in 1961.1 These numbers were gathered shortly before the civil rights activist movement happened in Chicago.

Timuel Black, who is currently deceased, was interviewed by a Chicago news station many years after he was a part of the protests in Burnside. He was an African-

American who went to Burnside Elementary in 1959, when it was still predominantly white. He explained how he entered into his second-grade classroom and his teacher

“was flabbergasted.”2 He continues with when he shared a book in class with the girl next to him and the teacher reacted in shock. The teacher barked, “Barbara, what are

1 A History of School Desegregation since 1954, William Vrame, p. 154 2 Encyclopedia of Chicago

you doing?”3 It is hard to read this without thinking about what a small little boy could do against the racism that he didn’t deserve to receive.

Black describes in the interview how he felt angry and lonely. When his father heard about the racist environment, he said, “What the hell, you put that child in a room with those crackers?”4 Black’s family also lived in a white neighborhood, so they felt isolated in their own house. Black, speaking many years later, did not seem regretful unlike many of the persons I encountered in my research were. Black seemed only to want to let go of the past.

Derrick Bell and the Brown Case

To get a better understanding of what happened in Burnside, the background of desegregation is important. The Brown v. Board of Education case is the fundamental.

The Supreme Court case was ruled on May 17, 1954 and legally ended segregation in schools across the country. The ruling judged separate black and white schools to be unconstitutional. In the eyes of a historian named Derrick Bell however, the outcome was supposed to be a breakthrough for the people of America toward the steps of freedom, but the famous Supreme Court case caused more separation than unity.

Bell was the first tenured African-American Professor of Law at Harvard Business

School. In his book Silent Covenants, he analyzed the Brown case differently from prior critics. He presented new information that was not talked about in wide context. Bell argues that over 5,000 black individuals were lynched at the hands of their white counterparts shortly after the case was ruled.5 Houses were burned, bodies were hung, and the white population in the country punished the blacks for legal equality. Bell

3 ibid 4 ibid 5 Silent Covenants, Derrick Bell, p. 45 4 concludes saying that the Brown case was a failure because although desegregation was legal, racism became more alive.

It was introduced to the reader the notion that the “poor whites subordinate their economic hopes for feelings of racial superiority.”6 This was an interesting read because it also introduced a new logic that never came to mind until reading Bell’s thesis. Black people wanted equality between their white counterparts but the white population would even diminish their economic status to obtain racial superiority. This was a very intriguing, new way to look at this topic and it makes a lot of sense. That also made me question the motives of the Supreme Court, whose main electives were of the white race.

In this essay, I explore much further by comparing Bell’s views of the Brown case to the segregation of schools in Chicago. Bell’s perspective was surprising because he was an African-American. My goal to test his hypothesis on the events at Burnside, when school desegregation was the prize to be fought for in America. Burnside sparked an even bigger movement in Chicago in the 1960s.

An in-depth look into the events of the Burnside civil rights movement raised questions that I wanted to look into. First, I intend to use the evidence that I have gathered to determine if Bell’s analysis could be applied to the Burnside movement?

Second, is it inevitable for desegregation to be followed by more racism?

To acquire more information about Burnside, I looked into the Chicago Tribune,

Chicago Defender, and the Encyclopedia of Chicago for access to information. Looking into the archives of the Chicago Tribune, articles in this source introduced a general

6 Ibid, p.30

context of what happened. It was very effective in showing a chronology of the events that took place in Burnside.

The Chicago Defender was the primary newspaper to document the stories affecting African-American citizens in Chicago in the mid-20th century. Many contributors for this paper were black Chicagoans telling stories from their neighborhoods. The topics of interest ranged from housing issues to education reform.

The information that I found in the Defender was much different than what I found in the

Tribune. The combination of both let me see through the eyes of someone who experienced the events of Burnside.

The Encyclopedia of Chicago was also a great resource because it gave more of a history of Chicago, with a great section specific to Burnside. It looks closely at the history of Chicago schools. The CE incorporates interviews from citizens speaking about their academic experience in Chicago, for instance the Timuel Black interview. It offers information about the geography, the history of the neighborhood, as well as the events that the area was best known for.

Willis as the Superintendent

The events that occurred in Burnside started to take form when Benjamin C.

Willis was elected to be the Superintendent of the Chicago Public Schools on June 8,

1953.7 Willis was previously the Superintendent of the Buffalo Public Schools in New

York. Willis commented on his new job by explaining how the job “is a challenge which no man interested in public education can decline.”8 He would be the subject of blame throughout the desegregation protests in Burnside.

7 Chicago Tribune, “Willis Accepts School Post as ‘Challenge’, June 9, 1953, John R. Thomson 8 ibid 6

It appears that Willis knew that Chicago was going to be a tougher place than

Buffalo to work in, in part because of what the former Superintendent, Howard C. Hunt, had left for him. Twenty-two thousand school employees were all under civil service.9

This means that they came straight from the military with no prior experience to the job.

In addition, many of the substitute teachers for the public schools were hired at a minimum level of education. There were many vacancies in the schools and teachers were not fully licensed. Therefore, with unlicensed teachers unable to teach children well, the productivity of the schools was weak.10

The 1953 Chicago Tribune introduces an article discussing the matter, pointing out a big flaw: Willis’ priority was to fill the vacancies only. On September 4, 1953, Willis proudly commented on the problem with the 800 new and unlicensed teachers. “The future of Chicago rests more in the hands of these educators than any other group.”

One might ask, how could they possibly be the future when they are not rightfully equipped with the tools to teach the next generation? At the same time, the situation was that there were not enough teachers and the school board was in the state of urgency, so that side of the issue is plausible.

Shortly after his appointment, Willis created a payment plan for the teachers of the Chicago district, which he averaged to be a 7.1 million dollar contract per year.11

Each teacher would get paid more due to the education that they had received prior to working in the schools. Teachers with bachelor’s degrees started with a salary of $3,600 a year with a maximum of a little over $5,000. Teachers with master’s degrees started

9 ibid 10 Chicago Tribune, “Supt. Willis Addresses 800 New Teachers”, Sept 4, 1953 11 Chicago Tribune, “Willis Offers Single Salary Teacher Plan”, Nov 26, 1953

with a salary of $4,000 with a maximum of a little over $6,000.12 The problem here was that many of the teachers who were hired were below the bachelor level. Many of them just came from the military and fulfilled the minimum requirements to be considered as an “elementary” teacher.13 The uncertified teachers were paid less than $2,000 a year and that created a tense discourse between the teachers and the school board.

Two members of the Chicago school board, John Doherty and Thomas

Haggerty, addressed to Willis the comments that many teachers collectively have said about their underpayment.14 Doherty and Haggerty attempted to speak on their behalf and persuade Willis to think twice about his budgeted plan. The teachers found his plan

“unacceptable” but acknowledged that it was up to him to make the change. One of them said “I am not going to shove anything down anyone’s throat.”15 Obviously distraught with Willis’ actions, the teacher made an united front to the man who was responsible.

Willis stood firm by his actions and implied that he did not have malicious intent while formulating his plan. He said: “These two men (Haggerty and Doherty) have heard me say if we had the money, we could give it all to the employees and go home and enjoy Christmas, but they know that we do not have that much money.”16 I see two areas of the scenario that I did not understand. Most of them were not certified to be teachers and they wanted to get paid more. Also, I understood the urgency to employ teachers under his circumstances, but Willis needed to focus on hiring better ones.

The inefficiency and racial inequality of schools

12 ibid 13 ibid 14 Chicago Tribune, “Willis Defends His Program On Teacher’s Pay,” Dec 24, 1953, Robert Wiedrich 15 ibid 16 ibid 8

The controversy with Willis had a disproportionate affect on black schools than white schools. Schools that were primarily black were at the lowest rating in 1957. A study in the Defender observed an exam for diplomatic service. Every black student that took the exam failed.17 This grew into a more general impression that black schools could not turn out qualified graduates for the jobs of Chicago that followed.18

Willis’ actions hindered the growth of the African-American community as well as

Chicago as a whole. With the population of African Americans growing, the schools that were predominantly black did not have the resources to provide willing students to advance into the job market. On top of that, the job market for an African-American was scarce, with most jobs paying very little for sufficient living. Simeon S. Booker Jr. was the one of the head bosses for Ebony magazine and he said it best with regards to a black man in America:

“Slowly America is becoming the land of opportunity…. for the Negro but we cannot find the qualified persons to take advantage of the openings.” -Simeon S.

Booker Jr.19

One of the reasons why black students were attempting to enroll in the white schools was because the curriculum and opportunities were far more abundant than the black schools. This succession would cause a problem later because Willis’ education plan was where the segregation stemmed from.

The academic inefficiency was bad, but the schools themselves were run down.

Clifford J. Campbell was the Director of the Dunbar Vocational High School in Chicago,

17 Chicago Defender, “Says Negro Schools Fail To Turn Out Qualified Grads”, February 4, 1957 18 ibid 19 ibid

and he said that his school was “inadequate to say the least.”20Campbell explained how

Dunbar was received to those who were associated with the school. The students were described as “slow, stupid, and simply not college material.”21 Furthermore, an environment where the children were working at affected how they performed in the workplace. Because the school was rundown, the learning environment was rundown as well.

Schools in many areas including Burnside were underdeveloped for the 4 years since Willis accepted the role of Superintendent in 1953. In 1959, Willis held a meeting in various areas of the city to hear directly from the people what they wanted improved in their neighborhoods. The result was eerie to say the least, as a few neighborhoods pitched requests for communal swimming pools.22 The writer for Chicago Tribune presents this finding with disappointment. I read this finding with disappointment as well.

The writer was disgusted by what the citizens wanted, calling the swimming pools “silly” and saying “the first need is more and better teachers.”23 The low performance of schools in Chicago had been a problem since before Willis took office and no one bothered to bring up ideas that may have improved the schools. These citizens wanted to spend money on pools, when the teachers complained that they were underpaid.

With all of my findings so far, I am surprised to see how these Chicago citizens were oblivious to the underdeveloped community around them.

In late 1961, the overcrowding of the schools became too much to bear for the school board. Many European immigrants set foot in Chicago, in search of work and

20 Chicago Defender, “Noted Educator Helps Plan a Better Chicago”, February 3, 1957 21 ibid 22 Chicago Tribune, “Dr. Willis Gets Some Bad Advice”, Sept 17,1959 23 ibid 10 education for their children. Chicago was inhabited by a high African-American percentage, so it became a battle to see who could get access to the best schooling.

The problems were the overcrowding and the double shifts, both of which slowly became prevalent for the black community and their schools only. Arguments started to take form as black parents wanted to move their kids from their corrupt neighborhood schools to the better, stable white schools. This could not happen, however, because

Willis denied integration from any school to another.

Around this same time, Willis’ contract was about to expire and he sought out a new contract from the school board. Willis believed that what he did for Chicago thus far had led the citizens down a brighter path than before he was elected Superintendent.

Due to the recent backlash he was receiving, the black Chicagoans did not want him to be re-elected. But against their wishes, he renewed his contract to be Superintendent for the following five years. His laws would stand, and he would not waver no matter who displayed discomfort in his eyes.

The Burnside Sit-In

Words were not enough in the fight towards desegregation for the Chicago children. Actions were made as well, and Burnside was a vital place where one memorable event took place. The Chicago Board of Education ordered 17 black students to transfer from the Burnside School to the Gillespie School that was not too far away.24 The issue was that the parents wanted their children to go to the Perry

School which was of higher quality. The Perry School was also predominantly white and

24 Chicago Tribune, “Burnside School Sit-ins Start Hymn Singing,” Jan 9, 1962

this could have been the first step towards integration.25The first stage occurred when a crowd of parents and students stood outside the Burnside School in a matter of protest.

However, it was done unusually with the participants singing hymns instead of chanting for change. This “protest” was made for the sole sake of integration. Yet, this would not come to pass.

This “hymn protest” was taken a step further when the same protesters took refuge in the school. This took place January 2, 1962. While school was still in session, many parents and students united in an effort to boycott classes for that day to send a message to the Chicago Board. A larger group was involved than the initial group and this would go on to spark the much larger Civil Rights movement in Chicago. The taxing fight for change continued and it was inspiring to read about the persistence of these parents. They didn’t care if they got arrested or what consequences they would have to face. For the matter of the future of the children and where they lived, they were willing to create a movement that at least attempted to make a change.

A total of 12 filed suits were issued towards the Chicago court for resistance towards the black students transferring to the Gillepsie School.26 These suits were declined because the judge found no feasibility to these accusations. Judge Richard B.

Austin seems to fully neglect what the people of Chicago are arguing against him and answers back with his own claim. “My three sons went to three different schools while living in the same house and I observed no trauma,” claimed Austin.27 This was absurd to read because this judge did not take into consideration the people that he is trying to order in a calmly manner. Apparently, his judgment matters more than the many people

25 ibid 26 Chicago Tribune,”Parents Lose First Round In Burnside Suit,” Feb 1, 1962 27 ibid 12 who rely on him to make the rules that will be beneficial to the growth of Chicago, not the decline. This was a betrayal on many layers and this was only the beginning.

From this analysis, I could not help but think about how the parents of Chicago are thinking one step ahead of the judicial system. From what was there, it seemed that the judge overlooked much of what the restraining orders were placed for and had a passive attitude about what was going on. The black parents were very upset about the segregation in Burnside and wanted to change that. One would think that they would send their kids to private or already integrated school for the safety and well-being of their children. This was not what the parents were attempting to fight for. If they wanted to see change for the children’s future, they wanted to start by example. These African-

American parents wanted to send their children to a predominately white school because they had the motive to begin an integration movement. The government and the judge did not see through the lenses and passed on it.

The Aftermath

The Burnside sit-in did not end well as eleven women and five men were arrested that day for trespassing and were called to court for hearing.28 This was a stance that I could argue in both ways. These parents did interfere with normal school activity for almost two weeks and forced setbacks for school. But at the same time, they were also charged with disorderly conduct, when the discrimination of students in their own schools was not considered such. It seems that some rules can have some exceptions to them while others are not. Also, this did not turn into an act of violence so

I do not see how this could be escalated into an arrest.

28 Chicago Tribune, “16 Arrested For Sit-In In S. Side School,” Jan 17, 1962

I found it interesting how those who were sent to court were unapologetic during their trails. That was the least of their worries because the problem that they were fighting for was still present and stronger than ever because of this. Black people fighting for their own freedom seems to be unjustified, but having racial division for their kids is justified? While looking at all this material, I try to look at both sides of the parties and look into the mindsets of all who were involved to get a better view of the story.

There was so much division back then that there was no catalyst or person to bring both sides together.

Later after the ruling, Judge Austin released all of Burnside protest participants that were brought to court that day. I don’t understand how this judge made his decisions back then, but he made an important one. As he claimed, “I think it was a mistake to arrest you people in the first place. This court can’t keep anyone out of school.”29 He later made the statement that what these men and women did for their children was “peaceful.”30

This was confusing to read because it looked as if the judicial system was starting to look towards integration, but these arrests were seen as a warning. One of the police officials said, “Public demonstrations while school is in session will not be tolerated.”31 So how can the judge consider this act to be peaceful but an official explain how it can never happen again? As I have been looking at it, the judicial system during this time did not care about the racial injustices at all. All they cared about was structure in the workplace so schools can keep running and nothing would jeopardize that. It is hard to see what they intend to continue with these decisions that they have made.

29 Chicago Tribune, “Free’s 10 More In Burnside Sit-In Arrests”, January 26, 1962 30 ibid 31 ibid 14

The arrests only made the black community angrier as protest still were in progress. Now the reason for it had two main objectives: remove Willis from his post and end the segregation. The arrests caused an uproar amongst the families involved with the protest. Although it was not in a form of a protest, many parents testified for the resignation of Willis in starting early February 1963. A few months later, Willis’ own board filed complaints against their boss’ inadequacies.32 The pressure ended in the accomplishment of one of the aforementioned goals of the parents of Chicago.

Superintendent Willis resigned from his position on October 5, 1963, much to the delight of many citizens in Chicago. Responding to his resignation Willis explained how the

Burnside neighborhood school policy “isn’t any more mine that it is any other citizens.”33It seems Willis accepted that the damage done to the community he was attempting to improve was too much.

This Burnside step was only the beginning as this type of response to racism would grow into a labor and overall civil rights movement. Martin Luther King Jr. also joined in the protests of Chicago and made it a nationwide issue to discuss amongst one another. Looking at an update in 1979 was also very eye-opening in terms of how the writers of this Chicago Tribune article thought about what they noticed since the civil rights movement. The President of Substitutes United for Better Schools, George N.

Schmidt talks about how they were building a few new schools on the black side of the racial border of Chicago.34 I do not see how building more schools in an area can fix the problem. From what had been happened, it would be assumed that would only intensify

32 Chicago Tribune, “Willis Resigns His Post”, October 5, 1963 33 ibid 34Chicago Tribune, “Voice of the People: Is Chicago still segregating its students?” May 1, 1979

the problem. It wasn’t with the curriculum or the school structure; it layered beneath the social structure that could not be controlled.

There were many authors who have criticized the political efforts towards integration since the Brown v. Board case about how much America is divided and continues to show no signs of improvement. From the beginning of my research, the perspective of Derrick Bell and his view of the “failed” Brown case made me look at this information from a different light. Tony Burroughs, who was one of the children who was a part of the Burnside sit-in, talked about how Burnside was important for a civil rights movement but we have much further to go if we want to see true change.

During this process, I have come across many different opinions on segregation, not specifically on Burnside, but in general. The Burnside sit-in comes with much controversy, but many praised it for what it sparked. Tony Burroughs, who was 12 years old at the time, was a part of the sit-in that happened. Reflecting on it more than 50 years later, he said that small gesture started something bigger. “This spark ignited protest against the Willis Wagons and eventually led to the 1963 citywide boycott of the

Chicago Public Schools where 250,000 students stayed at home,” he said.35 “Historians tend to look at the big picture,” he continued.36 From a man who witnessed it firsthand, this gesture worked out in the long run.

I believe that if Derrick Bell analyzed this case, he would still have the same philosophy as he had with Brown v. Board of Education. Bell, throughout his whole argument, says that resistance causes more racism. That is what happened after the

Brown case was settled. A civil rights movement brewed before the case for racial

35 http://www.sixthward.us/2012/01/burnside-academy-pivotal-in-school-de.html 36 ibid 16 equality for black kids around the country, then after the case happened, a response brewed in ways of lynching and assault on the African American community. There will always be a response to a reaction, and what I mainly received from Bell’s argument was that racism is inevitable no matter what law is enforced.

In James Patterson’s book, Brown v Board of Ed and Its Troubled Legacy, it was more of a factual book instead of an analytical one in Bell’s case. Patterson talked about how the black children did better in the integrated schools because the kids felt “free.” It was confusing to read this statistic because just because the schools were desegregated did not mean that the discrimination was still imminent. I’m not sure how that worked but something positive was achieved through this outcome.

James Patterson’s argument was very important because he displayed the battle between race v education, a topic that Bell nor many other authors address. After the case was settled, it didn’t solve the problem that black students weren’t receiving the education that the whites were. Race is one thing, but the progress of our younger generation is another battle that needs to be in the forefront.

Patterson continued his argument by posing the question of whether “the education of our children is important or the way they are being discriminated against is?” This question is a double edged sword because the resolution of both these areas were important for the future of America. Although education was very important for the kids, I could see how the equality for the black community was at the forefront. The amount of opportunity for the black people were very slim compared to others. To open a door to those opportunities meant educational opportunities for the children and better sustainable living for the African American community without much backtalk from the

whites. After analyzing both authors, it was imperative to see that it doesn’t matter which one is more important. Improvement in both of those sectors with lead to great success for the American people.

Bell seems to make very strong remarks, some well-supported and some that need more refining in my opinion. Towards the end of the third chapter of his book, he explains how the Brown decision was “more symbolic than real.”37 This was a stance that I did not agree with. I do agree that it did not fulfill its meaning, but I don’t see it as a symbol. When I think of a symbol, I think of something that stands for an idea or practice that was effective during a specific time. With the amount of backlash that was received from the white population, it seems that this case was looking more like a failure. It seems that after the Plessy v Ferguson case, the segregation that was occurring could be the only way of reconciliation between both the whites and the blacks. What Brown caused more of was more inequality more than the opposite and that is a bad symbolization, if it would be referred to as one.

He explained it better later in the book with a quote that overlays the theme of the entire book:

At best, the Brown precedent did no more than cast a half-light on that resistance, enough to encourage its supporters but not bright enough to reveal just how long and difficult the road to equal educational opportunity would prove to be. 38

Another argument from an author named James Patterson was very important because he displayed the battle between race v education, a topic that Bell nor many other authors address. After the case was settled, it didn’t solve the problem that black

37 Bell, p. 19 38 ibid 18 students weren’t receiving the education that the whites were. Race is one thing, but the progress of our younger generation is another battle that needs to be in the forefront.

This is a statement that I agree with, but I also believe that it is a long and difficult road for equality for black people in general. This was the first stepping stone by just focusing on the segregated schools, but the main goal is for equality between the whites and the blacks. Although as aforementioned, the results of this case were not as what was expected. There were lynchings and killings in various southern states which caused more inequality that what was trying to be diminished.

There is a change in Bell’s book however, when the reader stops looking through the lens of the oppressed black people, but start looking at the other side, the wealthy white population. It was introduced to the reader the notion that the “poor whites subordinate their economic hopes for feelings of racial superiority.”39 This was an interesting read because it also introduced a new logic that never came to mind until reading the section. Black people wanted equality between their white counterparts but the white population would even diminish their economic status to obtain racial superiority. This was a very intriguing, new way to look at this topic and it makes a lot of sense. That also made me question the motives of the Supreme Court, whose main electives were of the white race. The previously mentioned way of thinking of this case as a Reconstruction remake had more of a purpose after reading this. Suddenly after blacks can go to white schools, then they could start having their own property. Then they could be able to vote. Maybe an African-American could be the President after that. Negro inferiority was mattered and that was very disturbing to read, especially being a man of color myself.

39 Ibid, p.30

What Bell argues throughout his argument makes me question many of the motives that led to these historic decisions. One quote really made me think when I read, “Black rights are recognized and protected as long as the policymakers perceive that such advance will further interests that are their primary concern.”40

Bell’s though process progresses as he explains when the “interest- convergence” results are effective, it effects the superior, rich white population.41 Those are the people that they want to please the most because money is the way to proceed.

He is aggravated by this development and it is very selective to pick who you want to please instead of meeting the happiness of all of your peers. I respect Bell’s contradictions to these flaws of the government, but I do believe that he focuses on the negative of being a black citizen in the United States instead of thinking of ways of improvement to stop this cycle from continuing. In his defense, he is a historian who has his valid reasons to criticize the Brown v Board decision, but not once throughout the book has he mentioned ways in which unfair treatment of the black race can be nullified.

After reading most of this book, it became a sad story on how to feel sorry for the blacks because they were oppressed greatly. With all this knowledge, I feel that he could easily come up with a way to improve the political system that we have in America.

As I mentioned before, the Brown decision was not only a race issue, it was an educational one as well. It was something that Bell did not talk about much in this book and I am very surprised that he didn’t do it. The education is just as important as the race issue and he should have addressed that as well. In James Patterson’s book,

Brown v Board of Ed and Its Troubled Legacy, it was more of a factual book instead of

40 Ibid, p. 49 41 Ibid, p. 69 20 an analytical one in Bell’s case. Patterson talked about how the black children did better in the integrated schools because the kids felt “free.”42 It was confusing to read this statistic because just because the schools were desegregated did not mean that the discrimination was still imminent. I’m not sure how that worked but something positive was achieved through this outcome.

Towards the end of his book, Bell talks about how understanding the successes and the failures of the Brown case will lead to better planning for the future. His talk about the “unhappy past behind us” was something that I had an issue with.43 Yes, there was an unhappy racial gap but let us not neglect what progress has been made as well as what is still going on today. Bell died in 2011, so he was not alive to see these police brutality cases that have been plaguing our televisions. From Trayvon

Martin, Michael Brown, Freddie Gray, there have been no justice for these unarmed young black men. It becomes a standard right now and that is not how it should be.

There is much unresolved right now and it is important to increase the educational opportunities of our youth and progress in a future where equality is something that we all share.

In his conclusion, Bell made his final statement by concurring that the “Brown v.

Board of Education case was a failed implementation towards equality.”44 From everything that he argued, I agree with his statement but there is a fact that he has forgotten to acknowledge. This was the first case in America’s history in which black people’s rights were finally recognized. The Dred Scott case limited right as well as

Plessy v. Ferguson. This was the first time in which favored the black people and

42 Patterson, p. 95 43 Bell, p. 130 44 Bell, p. 196

reviewed their situation to their favor. The motives behind the decision are still unknown, but it doesn’t take away the fact that black voices were heard.

My analysis of the Burnside case has shown me the extent to which racism and segregation hit the hearts of those who encountered such resistance. I have been analyzing Derrick Bell’s thesis before I started my Burnside research and his position on the Brown case was very alarming to me. As an African-American himself, it would be natural to dislike the government for the mistreatment of black people in America.

Instead, he thought more logically and said the racism was inevitable. The same should be applied to this Burnside case because after the arrests were made after the Burnside sit-in, all fingers pointed towards Superintendent Willis as he was seen as the racist in this scenario. The movement that was created after the case was a putback to what was seen as a racist crime, when Willis said that he had nothing but the productivity of the schools in mind. Although we can never know his true motive, we could see the response that initiated from what he created.

The Bell and Patterson argument was also very insightful as well. Bell argues that racism is inevitable after an attempt of desegregation. Patterson argues that Bell’s issue doesn’t matter. The education of the children and the equal rights for black students should be the main problem. While both of them are not wrong, I believe in

Bell’s thesis better than Patterson because the Burnside parents for example, fought for desegregation and racism to diminish so their children can have equal rights in schools.

Bell’s thesis goes a step further than what Patterson is attempting to argue.

Bell is a historian that has intrigued me more than any historian before because he neglected what he truly felt about a public case that affects the African-American 22 community and further analyzed to give a true thesis, not a sentimental one. From what

I saw with the Burnside case, Bell’s perspective fits perfectly with the events that occurred in Burnside. More resistance and fighting against racism ensued after the

Burnside case finished. Following into today, there will always be a response to a racist action. The question is, is it possible for the fight to stop and the discussion toward reconciliation reconvene?

Bibliography

1. Bell, Derrick, Silent Covenants, New York University Press 2005

2. Patterson, James, Brown v. Board and its Troubled Legacy, Oxford University

Press

3. Vrame, William, History of School Desegregation, Oxford University Press 1989

4. Encyclopedia of Chicago

5. Chicago Tribune, “Willis Accepts School Post as ‘Challenge’, June 9, 1953, John

R. Thomson

6. Chicago Tribune, “Supt. Willis Addresses 800 New Teachers”, Sept 4, 1953

7. Chicago Tribune, “Willis Offers Single Salary Teacher Plan”, Nov 26, 1953

8. Chicago Tribune, “Willis Defends His Program On Teacher’s Pay,” Dec 24, 1953,

Robert Wiedrich

9. Chicago Defender, “Says Negro Schools Fail To Turn Out Qualified Grads”,

February 4, 1957

10. Chicago Tribune, “Dr. Willis Gets Some Bad Advice”, Sept 17, 1959

11. Chicago Tribune, “Burnside School Sit-ins Start Hymn Singing,” Jan 9, 1962

12. Chicago Tribune,”Parents Lose First Round In Burnside Suit,” Feb 1, 1962

13. Chicago Tribune, “16 Arrested For Sit-In In S. Side School,” Jan 17, 1962

14. Chicago Tribune, “Free’s 10 More In Burnside Sit-In Arrests”, January 26, 1962

15. Chicago Tribune, “Willis Resigns His Post”, October 5, 1963

16. Chicago Tribune, “Voice of the People: Is Chicago still segregating its students?”

May 1, 1979

17. http://www.sixthward.us/2012/01/burnside-academy-pivotal-in-school-de.html 24