More Than Budget Cuts

A domino effect has come into play as Philadelphia also succumbs to school closings. As in Chicago , “budget cuts” are to blame for the decimation of libraries, extra-curricular activities and sports. Schools are being replaced with prisons. Our First Lady , Michelle Obama gave a commencement speech at Bowie State University recently , and some of her remarks shed light on shared beliefs throughout the government on its responsiblity for making these decisions. The decisions to close schools are not solely based on “budget cuts” and we know it.

Her thought-provoking remarks :

But today, more than 150 years after the Emancipation Proclamation , more than 50 years after the end of “separate but equal,” when it comes to getting an education, too many of our young people just can’t be bothered . Today, instead of walking miles every day to school, they’re sitting on couches for hours playing video games, watching TV. Instead of dreaming of being a teacher or a lawyer or a business leader, they’re fantasizing about being a baller or a rapper.

Let us reiterate that, THE MINORITY IS NOT THE MAJORITY.

I can speak for all of us here at HazieThoughts when I say we will not be generalized. It is true that the youth in our culture aspire for fast wealth but it’s because we have been conditioned to aspire for superficiality. The resources capable of producing higher hopes for our culture are being replaced with systems only meant to institutionalize and make us another statistic. We do not fail to be educated , education fails us.

The Philadelphia Student Union states,

“We are wiling to break the stereotypes and expectations of urban youth, and are taking this opportunity to tell the world that urban school districts deserve funding and it is your responsibility under the Commonwealth Charter to provide us with more than a ‘bare bones education.”

The students in Philadelphia, Chicago and other struggling school systems around the country who face these adversities want more, and we as a culture do too.