It seems that every day, white progressives will push an idea that reminds me of a poignant quote from Malcolm X that is every bit as relevant today as it was during the 1960s. “The white liberals are more dangerous than the conservatives; they lure the Negro, and as the Negro runs from the growling wolf, he flees into the open jaws of the ‘smiling’ fox,” he said, comparing the conservative to a wolf and the liberal to the fox.
What is happening in Seattle’s public school system (SPS) is a profound illustration of what X communicated numerous times throughout his career as a civil rights leader. The public school system has decided to phase out its Highly Capable Cohort (HCC) programs, dedicated to gifted and talented students.
Why?
You probably already know the answer. The decision was ostensibly aimed at addressing racial inequities. As KTTH radio host Jason Rantz wrote in a recent op-ed:
Privileged progressives, donning their white knight armor, are in the next phase of a plan to end Seattle Public Schools’ gifted students program — known locally as its Highly Capable Cohort (HCC). They complained the HCC was too white.
HCC separates academically gifted students from others via different classrooms or entirely different schools. But in 2020, white Seattle school board directors voted to terminate the HCC over the objections of parents. HCC will be completely phased out by the 2027-28 school year.
Outraged more by the success of white and Asian students than by the untapped potential of Black and Hispanic pupils, progressives would rather drag achievers down than elevate everyone. These self-proclaimed saviors boast on social media about tackling inequities, oblivious to the harm they inflict. Indeed, the program to replace the HCC, and be implemented in every classroom, ensures that gifted students will be unchallenged, struggling students will escape the attention they deserve and teachers will be overwhelmed. In other words, everyone will be equitably harmed.
The move has been met with both praise and condemnation. Those supporting the decision argue that it will help schools address historical racial inequities – although they seem to have a hard time explaining how. However, those opposing the decision, including black, Asian, and Hispanic folks, “argued that SPS should work harder to identify minority students who are eligible for HCC, rather than kill the program entirely,” according to conservative radio host Rantz.
Rantz also rightly points out that “progressives would rather drag achievers down than elevate everyone,” which is the crux of the matter.
The last thing white progressives want is for black and brown students to be elevated to a level where they are competing with white and Asian students. This theory might seem counterintuitive, given their vociferous declarations of unending support for these demographics.
But remember, as Malcolm X said, we are dealing with foxes, not wolves. The cunning liberal foxes are not concerned with employing measures that would improve academic performance among blacks and Hispanics. Rather, they would prefer a situation in which students of all ethnicities and races are substandard in their levels of education – as long as racial minorities remain the lowest.
If Democrats are supposed to be the party that champions the needs of oppressed minorities, they have to make sure they keep minorities oppressed. They seek to accomplish this feat by imposing these policies, while pretending they are for the good of black and Hispanic students when, in reality, they are setting them up for failure when they become adults.
To put it simply, this decision, as well as the other foolhardy moves SPS is likely to make, will not end well. It will only create more students who do not achieve their potential because they were not provided with the appropriate resources. They will only ensure that black and brown students continue to languish. It is difficult to believe that this wasn’t the plan the whole time.
