Dayton Daily News education reporter Scott Elliott writes about schools, kids, teaching and learning.
Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2007 > May > 19 > Entry
No, really, it’s not racism
Over the last week, I had a lot of phone calls from angry east siders. It was a curious phenomenon. A map in the newspaper, followed by a group of ministers, show and state the obvious — Dayton is a racially divided city.
It just seems a bit strange to me that this makes people so mad.
One phone call in particular was interesting. And telling.
The lady left me a message. I didn’t keep the message and I don’t remember her name. I’ll call her Mary. She told me she was furious about Thursday’s story on the ministers and really wanted to talk to me about it. She was direct but polite. So I called her back.
The school board election was not about race, Mary told me. Her no vote certainly wasn’t motivated by any ill will toward black folks and neither did any of her east side friends. In fact, she has many black friends at work and they, too, voted against the levy because it was just too costly.
I told Mary I believed she was being honest about why she voted no. But I pointed her back to the map and the stark divide it showed. This is not natural, I said. A school levy result should not show such a racial divide. In most cities, when levies pass or fail, the voting does not follow any sort of geographical pattern.
That may be, Mary said, but in this case, it was the school board. They’ve done a rotten job of managing. It’s the school district’s spending, she said. They paid too much for the Reynolds buildings and they spend way more per student than private schools.
I pointed out to Mary that she was changing her argument. Did she vote no because she couldn’t afford the levy, or to punish the school board for its bad management?
Mary returned to defending herself and her neighbors, saying they are not racists. She felt the ministers, by calling for racial reconciliation, were calling her a racist, Mary said. It made her so mad, she promised to work against any future levy.
I reminded Mary again that she started off saying that she opposed the levy because she couldn’t afford it. Now she says she will fight any future levy, before she even knows how much it will cost? Suppose it is small and affordable? If cost is the issue for her, how can she know already that she will be opposed to it?
Because she is angry, Mary told me. She is angry at the ministers. What do they know anyway, she asked? Ministers aren’t exactly known for being a bright bunch, she said.
“Maybe you should ask yourself why it makes you so angry,” I suggested. “Why does it make you angry that someone should point out that our city is racially divided?”
She didn’t have an answer for that.
The fact that Dayton’s levy result not only maps to a geographical divide, but also matches to a demographic divide by race suggests more is going on here. Are people consciously going into the voting both and trying to stick it to the folks on the other side of the river? Except for the truly hardcore racists, I don’t think most people think that way.
But perhaps something is going on subconsciously. Some voters, it seems, may have told themselves they were voting no because of cost, or because they believe the school board has done a bad job. On the other side of town, perhaps they voted yes telling themselves they were doing it for the kids, or to keep the city economically viable.
But the data would suggest some of them are voting the way they do, somehow, to spite those other folks across the river.
Permalink | Comments (17) | Categories: Dayton Public Schools, My Favorite Posts, Urban School Issues
Comments
By School Supporter
May 22, 2007 9:05 PM | Link to this
RE: State Amendment concerning the school funding: How does this address the earlier comments? Will student behavior improve, accountability increase, teacher contracts be ruled unconstitutional? Here’s Scott’s excerpts: “school board … done a rotten job of managing” “ministers … calling her a racist … made her so mad” “a painful truth is being told … Cost was a factor in this vote. And so was race.” Here’s the other comments; how will the ballot initiative address: 1. “Perhaps the �white� side of town is more aware of, educated about, or sensitized to these issues and more burdened with the bills.” 2. “The school board has blacks in control and the West Side may feel more comfortable with their mishandling of school discipline, money, and management.” 3. “I literally can�t afford to pay the higher property taxes.” 4. Some of us are tired of everyone picking our pockets of the money that we work hard to earn.” 5. “this series of articles will increase opposition in the East Side to any levy.” 6. “DPS did not do well for my kids and DPS school officials evidenced little interest in my concerns over school discipline.” 7. “DPS levy proponents … [acted] like it was only for black children and being supported by black elected officials;” 8.”I think the voting was more about self-interest and less about race. However, DPS does have huge racial problems. … Black teachers … play the race card … weaken[ing] DPS by eroding trust within the non-black population” 9. “Look at the dress of kids, the behavior, the music they listen to; all this explains their behavior.”By Rick
May 22, 2007 8:08 PM | Link to this
David, DPS Teacher, what are stomping contests? You mentioned fraternities and sororities, do they have them now in high school? What are these pageants you are talking about? I must be out of it because I hadn’t heard of any of that stuff.By deb
May 22, 2007 12:27 PM | Link to this
Now that we have all complained about how property taxes aren’t the fair way to fund schools, we’ve heard how the State Supreme Court has told the the State of Ohio 4 different times to fix the problem(& they haven’t) The State of Ohio cheated DPS & the other Big8 schools out of millions of dollars - our time to speak up is here. There are petitions that should be available at the schools (or my understanding is that any DPS teacher should have this available to them)to sign for a State Amendment concerning the school funding. This needs to be signed by registered voters so that it can be on the ballot in November. Please get a hold of your schools and sign this. Scott, where’s this info in the paper????By David
May 22, 2007 8:40 AM | Link to this
DPS TEACHER just said it so clearly. The racism that some try to insert here as a race card is really black racism’s results on the school system. The emphasis on recruiting with pageants/stomping contests, etc., for sororities/fraternities, cotillions, balls, that are black rather than a fair school for all students has lost the support of the “knowing” people in the DPS community. Couple with the protection of blacks as teachers who are less than competent and even promoting them, and in some cases covering up illegal behaviors, and being anti-white teacher/administrator/student is there. The same happened in the city with a black without experience chosen over a city manager candidate from Kettering who certainly knows the area. People know what goes on. So don’t blame them for voting reality. It’s actually the racism, but it’s the west side racism that’s the problem and the inability to see what they’ve done to their kids, the last generation and this generation, by not having them educated properly in the schools. Look at the dress of kids, the behavior, the music they listen to; all this explains their behavior. Who’s going to take responsibility?By a DPS teacher
May 21, 2007 10:52 PM | Link to this
A free and public education for all clashes with me and mine getting our piece of the pie. We haven’t figured out how we can all have it all. I think the voting was more about self-interest and less about race. However, DPS does have huge racial problems. There is a difference between the way black and non-black students, teachers, and parents are handled. Look at those who make the $ at DPS. Look at those who sit at their air-conditioned desks. It’s a widely held belief that if you are white, you will probably not be considered for an administrative job. Or, if you are lousy at your job or there are complaints about you, you will get bumped up to an administrative position. Black teachers within buildings form power groups which, when opposed, play the race card for disagreements that occur. Some persons flaunt their involvement with their black sororities, AKA and Delta, to the point of competing within DPS schools. The stomping contests, etc. have nothing to do with educating children. Kids with discipline issues are often treated differently based upon race. DPS is trying, I think, to make up for past racial discrimination against blacks by discriminating against non-blacks. It may make some blacks feel better, but it has weakened DPS by eroding trust within the non-black population and by choosing the most popular black person for the job, instead of the most excellent person for the job. Quality and integrity have no color. It will be interesting to see how the DPS cuts are made - toward excellence or toward political expedience.By Eric
May 21, 2007 12:09 PM | Link to this
Why would it make a person angry? Because being called a racist is today’s witch hunt….If you defend yourself and act like you were insulted then it’s thrown in your face against you. There is no socially acceptable defense for a person declared to be a racist and you did it to half the town. Maybe it’s your name-calling that is angering people. So you got stats that show a racial divide and you also show that one side voted one way and another side voted another way. OK so with that in mind, I take it you find it perfectly acceptable to look at crimes in the area and looking at that same breakdown of your racially divided city to make a conclusion. Are you willing to use the same logic that you applied to the levy vote to crime stats of Dayton? How about education scores? Your smugness is short-lived when put to true scrutiny.By charterschoolhater
May 21, 2007 12:05 AM | Link to this
I voted against the levy becasue of the poor financial management of those in charge in the schools. So did many of my good friends in West Dayton. A no vote has absolutly nothing to do with white people not liking balck ones. Many african americans voted no too.By Eve
May 20, 2007 7:23 PM | Link to this
Scott, I wish you’d have asked “Mary” how she voted on the 2002 bond issue. A yes vote might have cut out a lot of your hypothesizing about ulterior motives.By Scott Elliott
May 20, 2007 6:15 PM | Link to this
It’s interesting how quick people are to attack the messenger rather than the message when a painful truth is being told. If we didn’t want to air other points off view, we wouldn’t allow comments and letters on the editorial page or on blogs like this. Folks, look at Sunday’s paper. The homeownership map is there. The income map is there. They don’t match to the voting pattern. The race map is also there. It does match the voting pattern. Also, the story quotes three people saying that cost was a major factor in the way many people voted. We have said that in our stories since day one. The cost of the levy, unequivocally, was the main reason for the levy’s defeat. Had the cost not driven down yes votes in west Dayton, the levy probably would have passed. But a smaller levy likely would not have flipped any east side precincts to voting yes, based on historical voting patterns. Cost was a factor in this vote. And so was race.By Buford
May 20, 2007 4:07 PM | Link to this
I am white, a property owner/Dayton resident,a retired senior citizen,live on the west side, had the two youngest kids finish HS in DPS, experienced the apathy from DPS school officials after my two kids were mentally and physically abused by thugs in the DPS HS. I voted against the school levy and am likely to vote against future DPS levies. I voted “NO” because: The levy was directed against property owners, despite Court decisions saying such was unconstitutional; My tax records show DPS already is receiving well more than 50 percent of my total property tax assessment; The levy was for way too much; Renters and public assistance persons would or could be exempt from results of a passed levy - yet they could vote it in and incur future financial obligations for local property owners; DPS did not do well for my kids and DPS school officials evidenced little interest in my concerns over school discipline problems at the time; DPS levy proponents became racially targeted and blatant in the final weeks and days leading up to the vote - like it was only for black children and being supported by black elected officials; DPS senior representatives kept turning up the “threat meter” (i.e. nbr of teachers to be affected, classes and curiculums to be cut, etc.); DPS per student cost already well exceeds that of the other major urban cities in Ohio.By Rick
May 20, 2007 3:58 PM | Link to this
Hey, Scott,you moved to the suburbs. So don’t try to make the whites that stayed in Dayton, who live closer to blacksj than you, feel guilty. I can guarantee you that this series of articles will increase opposition in the East Side to any levy. And, of course, the article were unbalanced. You did not discuss any of the reasons why people on your blog stated why they voted against the levy. (I am excluding the discussion about “Mary.”)By Rev'd Up
May 20, 2007 3:23 PM | Link to this
It’s obvious to anyone who reads this blog that Scott’s agenda is: Levy fails, whites racist. No amount of letters, comments, or phone calls will shake a DDN do-gooder from their agenda so there’s no point in even discussing it with Scott. Just be good little readers and understand that all DDN articles and the agendas behind them are gospel!By Tallsandi
May 20, 2007 2:33 PM | Link to this
I is not about race, it is about the homeowner versus the renter. You look at the voting record based upon that and see what you get. Some of us are tired of everyone picking our pockets of the money that we work hard to earn.By CJ
May 20, 2007 2:18 PM | Link to this
I find all of this very offensive and racially biased. I feel that DDN did not do an accurate job of checking all the factors that may have played into the voting choices. I didn’t vote for it because I literally can’t afford to pay the higher property taxes. Did DDN ever compare the ratio of home ownership and votes for or against the levy? For me it was strictly a money issue (or lack there of!) Not everything is racially motivated!By Eve
May 20, 2007 9:34 AM | Link to this
Why am I angry? (I’m not angry, but I am a bit annoyed). For one thing, the DDN is using statistics that are 7-1/2 years old. My east side neighborhood has had dramatic changes in demographics in the last five years, and I am sure we are not unique. Even using outdated demographics, you’re dealing with an approximate 19% voter turnout. The real question is why are 79% of voters so apathetic, not where the 11%, which further breaks down to something like 8% of registered voters who happen to live on the east side, bothered to vote “no” for any number of reasons. Hardly a clear, concise example of strong racist overtones that the DDN seems intent on presenting.By David
May 20, 2007 8:56 AM | Link to this
I’m disappointed at your article here about the phone call. I sounds as though you kept baiting “Mary-on-the-phone” to get her to twisted around her statements. Perhaps she isn’t as articulate as a highly-educated columnist at stating her thinking. Your techniques sound as though you have a goal: to paint the different in the percent votes as being racism rather than the mixture of other factors and perhaps racism is included in that mixture. The statement is made that levy votes should never follow boundaries. I’ve not seen that rule posted anywhere??? The school board has blacks in control and the West Side may feel more comfortable with their mishandling of school discipline, money, and management. The West Side folks may feel there are fewer outs for themselves especially the ones with misbehaving children who don’t find easy homes in “new” school districts with their past record and habits of behavior. The West Siders may understand there has been kid gloves handling of their children compared to the handling of East Siders’ children by the school district and individual principals in the buildings. That doesn’t happen in successful other area schools. There’s a problem with the management of both city and school district by the elected leaders and the James Cummings and Scott Elliot articles in today’s paper appear to be more a DDN agenda of either pushing their liberal view or stirring old wounds for ratings and doing future damage. I am dissapointed at the coverage. Luckily many folks from West Side have “escaped” despite the alleged whites’ attempts to keep them trapped in the geographical area west of the river—there are many in other school districts who expect discipline and behavior and success from their students and they make sure they get that instead of attacking the teachers or pressuring the principals to not control the students. Thank goodness they do.By Mary
May 20, 2007 6:54 AM | Link to this
I am not the “Mary” you spoke with. However, the changing, and waffling you describe from the “other Mary” also happens with levy marketing and newspaper takes. “It is race”, “no, it’s not really just race, it’s also economics”. “It’s for the children”. “No, it’s really for the union and pay raises”. “It’s for education and class sizes” “No, it’s to keep football and basketball.” The statement in today’s articles I focussed on was from a woman who pointed out it was not made clear to the public how the money was needed and would be used. I think the “Mary” you describe, like many other voters, has a general distrust of the system (not just schools) spending the money wisely. Over recent years, several suburban school disricts have had problems even keeping count of he money. I am talking about highly paid treasurers and administrators who have made millions of dollars in accounting mistakes. I think many voters feel as if government officials are on spending sprees without coherent plans,visions, and realities. Perhaps the “white” side of town is more aware of, educated about, or sensitized to these issues and more burdened with the bills. While the voting maps and voting statistics show a correlation to race, that does not mean race is the direct cause or motivation of the vote.