Black-Centred Schools in a Multicultural Society

By Stephen Ainsah-Mensah

There is a growing feeling among Black Community Leaders in Toronto that the time is ripe to establish Black-centred schools aimed at addressing the multifaceted problems of Blacks. This impression is not out of place neither is it naïve nor strange. It is the entire style of this kind of school that may not attract, at this time, the anticipated consensus though establishing the school itself may be a thankful addition to mainstream schools that are designed for all shades of students. The question is: what will be the curricula and teaching style of Black-centred schools? People just have to wait! In fact, a Black-centred school is relevant when viewed within the context of the economic, educational, social and cultural circumstances of Blacks in comparison to, say, Whites. This untested academic experiment, styled Black-focused schools, ought to be initiated sooner than later. The outcome of such schools will enable policy makers to put in place hitherto untried kind of innovative policies that could tidy up the disorderliness of multiculturalism and shape the society for the better or in the right direction. Generally, in multicultural societies such as Toronto, the doings of Blacks crisscross those of Whites (and others), yet there are glaring disparities in how these different social groups understand, emotionalize and will actions in accordance with dissenting worldviews. Are we to say that, in the main, the entire human machinery of Blacks here is wired in a fashion different from, say, Whites? No, for sure! The problem is one of how an alienated Black culture can be made to fit into the dominant culture. Some leading community members see Black-centred schools as an answer to this problem.

Canada is becoming very multicultural as her massive integration of immigrant social groups is changing her cultural landscape. Toronto, which is the heart of Canadian commerce, best demonstrates Canadian multiculturalism. Thus, Toronto’s growth and development, while economic, is also socio-cultural because one can see there a vibrant mix of all shades of people from all kinds of cultural backgrounds. This beauty about Toronto also generates her ugliness, for the great multicultural advancement has brought about a sense of insecurity and a variety of incipient or mature confrontations between the dominant culture spearheaded by Whites and minority social groups, the most visible - in terms of composite disadvantages - of which is Blacks. Multicultural advancement has also nurtured multicultural divergences. So what must have gone wrong? Why this cultural and - for sure - economic degeneration of Blacks? The problems, furthermore, could not be said to fall in the province of destiny, nor, worse of all, can it be said to be a matter of biological or cultural inadequacies. If we do know that the level of cultural integrity is the best measure of a people’s progress, then it is doubtless why Blacks in Toronto face insurmountable hurdles in trying to better their positions in life compared to other species of people, chiefly Whites. There is simply not a competing sense of pride and dignity in an objective, existing Black culture - and history – that correlates with the present circumstance of Blacks in terms, especially, of knowledge acquisition. The best places to impart such knowledge - in schools - do not do so.

It is, therefore, true to say that socio-cultural degeneration could be corrected through the right kind of school education. The object here is to let flow into the receiving student rich information that is culture-centred, objectively taught and believed to manifest the genuine personality of Blacks. Put differently, it may be postulated that Black students ought to be taught their history, culture, and allied courses with the hope of redirecting their lives, particularly their psyche, into proper tracts. If the biochemistry of “my” life is enriched - and if, in particular, my psyche is reorganized in line with my culture - then I regain my authentic cultural identity, my real poise, and I will be ready to participate actively in the affairs of the society in a manner that could lead to my untainted social-economic advancement. This, in general, seems to be the standpoint of proponents of Black-centred schools. Now, the point ought to be emphasized that if there is anything like a Black culture in Toronto, it is a subculture. Since the dominant culture is - so one may say - White, including, of course, the academic culture, there is bound to be among Blacks a sense of alienation, unexpressed inferiority or deformed superiority, implicit or declared anger, and recurrent frustration about the system in place as well as the people who uphold the system.

It is now known that by the age of sixteen, over half of Black male youths in Toronto public schools do not have the required credits to enable them to pursue further education - meaning most of these Blacks are likely to drop out of school. The problem to be discerned here is that a large number of Black male youths are unable to connect with the academic culture that is made available to them with the result that they feel isolated, unbalanced and mystified. Lingering in their minds is likely to be the question: “where do Blacks fit in all this teaching stuff?” The offshoot of this question is erratic thoughts and dispositions - though this may be more of a generalization. Is it any wonder, then, that Black male students are claimed to be underperformers and underperforming? Observe the public school system and you will see that what resonates as a system of knowledge belongs to the dominant culture. Members of this culture are going to feel more secure, superior (though questionable in many respects), confident, ambitious, daring, career-bent, and more structured (though not necessarily wise) than members of subcultures, particularly Blacks. This kind of feeling could generate stubborn arrogance in the sense that, time and again, members of subcultures may be belittled and their grievances viewed as premature, unwarranted or - simply - sidelined. Besides, it becomes a frequent phenomenon that members of the dominant culture shield themselves with economic power by making sure that prominent careers are reserved for their kind.

The argument may, therefore, be put forward - and rightly so - that if Blacks, just like Whites or some others, are situated in an academic culture that enables them to study Black history, culture, outstanding scholars and role models from the dawn of history up to the present, among others, then the proficiency of Black students or graduates from Black-centred schools could squarely match those of other species of people. Academic proficiency, in that case, may be said to connect to a profusion of culture-based knowledge. Graduates’mental and emotional temperaments will prove to be well conditioned to respond to the social, economic and political needs of the society. The reverse could dislocate mental and emotional readiness, and graduates could thereby face an intricate worldview that is pretty disturbing and unwelcome to them.

The question, then, is: who are to be the teachers in Black-centred schools? Are the teachers going to be totally Blacks, or will there be opportunities for equally eligible - or, perhaps, more eligible – non-Black teachers?

Let us begin with the Black teachers. These are teachers who have been emotionally and mentally wounded by the fact that pertinent curricula about Black scholars and role models have either been ignored or omitted from the records. They are fully aware of this issue; they are likely to incorporate this issue in the teaching process. Much as the teaching process will be new, vital, essentially cultural, it may also foster in the students a sense of pride, dignity, yet outrage as to why the system discouraged, in the first place, such significant knowledge. Suppose graduates of Black-centred schools enter the non-school world, they will feel empowered to access and challenge the social and economic status quo.

Students or graduates who are far more emotionally charged may perceive the dominant culture as adversarial. They may strive to directly confront it. What transpires here is that, even though multiculturalism is real and has come to stay, it trembles from the seemingly irreconcilable course of action of those who believe the dominant culture has, for far too long, obstructed the teaching and grasping of key subjects about other cultures such as Black culture. It may, in addition, be stated - by some or many people - that a Black-centred school entails segregation. If it does, it is constructive segregation. The object is not to build a community of Blacks separated from others. It is to build a system of school graduates whose life histories can connect with the social-culture of their past. After that, it is a matter of integrating into the wider society.

Now, will a Black-centred school hire qualified non-Black teachers - that is, teachers who have a firm grasp of what Black students lack and how to address them? This question appears tricky precisely because it hits right at the heart of discrimination - or worse, racism. Suppose non-Black teachers are not employed, then there will be a public outcry of the form: “Uh-huh, everything about the school is Black! The school practices discrimination and frowns upon statutory anti-discrimination codes without fail.” To hire only Black teachers may however be a practice that the students, on the hand, may welcome. To them, it is a matter of commonsense that a teacher who can properly identify to their needs is the teacher who is of their own kind. I suggest a cautious blend of both Black and non-Black teachers, which could aid in bringing cultural objectivity and a feeling of non-bias dissemination of the standard curricular to the public domain.

There has not been a Black-centred school in Toronto before - or so it seems - though there have been, and are, for-Blacks community organizations. The point that there is an increasing rate of Black student drop-out cannot continue. It shows that something is definitely wrong. It may be held that Blacks need economic empowerment in a system that, admittedly, has been biased towards ambitious and enterprising Blacks who are bent on achieving high-level successes through an access to public finance or funds. But one is dealing with Blacks whose social-culture has been warped, stamped down or uprooted - as the history and practice of thralldom and colonialism will show. Species of people who have - directly or indirectly - passed through this terrible phase in life naturally need a revival of their social-culture, for that will ultimately realign their individual and collective psyche, the biochemistry of their lives, so to speak.

Perhaps, the old generation of Blacks should proceed in life without having to immerse themselves pretty fully into the question of social-culture, but children and youths may have to do otherwise. The latter constitute, as we know, the backbone of the future. One is inclined to say that, in general, the apparent success of Black folks should not begin from economic empowerment. There is the tendency to mess up somewhere due to uncoordinated forms of private and social consciousness if economic empowerment begins the curative process instead of being an adjunct. The process ought to begin from how the psyche can be coordinated on the basis of a genuine social-culture. Advocates of Black-centred schools are attempting to do this job. A postponement of this untested academic experiment could lead to more public debates, more confrontations, and hence more problems, especially with policy makers.