Segregation in Mississippi mid to late 60s (Jackson, Gulfport: transfer, neighborhoods)

[Listener2307]

Originally Posted by JacksonPanther

Look up "Council Schools" and "Segregation Academies" and learn something about Mississippi history.

Look it up yourself, and post a link.

But there would have been no need for a segregation academy anywhere around Jackson before 1964, because schools were already segregated.

[Southern man]

This looks like a good place to post this link..

Is Massachusetts more racist than Mississippi, as Chief Justice Roberts hints? - Yahoo! News

[Listener2307]

Probably is a good place to put that article. I notice that Massachusetts really bristled at the notion of being compared poorly with Mississippi. That sense of superiority is hard to hide.

[An Einnseanair]

Originally Posted by Listener2307

My friends were there, and reported no trouble. I have no knowledge of anyone who was sent to any sort of white only school. Sending "most" whites off to a previously nonexistent school would be pretty tough. Unless you have a credible link, it will have to pass as just another opinion/myth on the Internet.

The "95%" numbers are an exaggeration, and I don't have a link, but I can use personal experience to verify part of it. I didn't start school until the late 1970's, well after forced segregation. I grew up in a very rural area, and at that time there were two private "Christian" schools within reasonable driving distance. As I understand it, they were very small schools before segregation but they grew considerably after segregation. I'm fortunate that neither of my parents are racist because at the time they could have easily paid the private tuition. They compared the quality of education in the "private" schools and my zoned public school and realized there was no real choice; my brother and I went to the public school. Thanks to a great principle and a few AMAZING teachers in high school I got an excellent education for a tiny 1A school.

Even at that point the majority of students were white. Not so these days; the vast majority of students are black (though still far from 95%), and the "Christian" schools are still mostly white.

[donngpb]

I moved from Hattiesburg in 1962. I had lived on Tuscan across from Wm Carey College and had not been back until last week. When in high school the only thing I knew about blacks in school was the fact that I could hear a marching band practicing outdoors to the northeast of my house. I drove through the area last week entering Tuscan from a new road that did not exist along the edge of the college, then drove along Edward to James to Bay Street and saw only one white person on my way to West Pine. The old houses were non existent on Tuscan and the old downtown was a great disappointment to me. I attended the Old Hattiesburg HS building, the 7th grade center at the time, and Hawkins Jr High for 8th and 9th grade, and was sadly disappointed in the condition of the area and buildings. I also attended the new Hattiesburg HS where we were challenged academically to prepare for college-pilot program for algebra 1 in the 7th grade. I loved it. I drove on through town and back onto Hwy 49 and headed home. It certainly isn't the place I remember. I have no idea what went on during the civil rights movement. What happened to the old downtown area?

[John Ryder]

Cant tell you about 1964 wasnt born until 1972, have lived all around the south my whole life, i eat with other races, work with other races, go shopping next to other races, go into quick stop stores all around other races, go out on the weekend and see other races, the south has come along way in a couple of decades. The thought being if you intergrate schools it would bring the poverished blacks up a level of white education, it had the opposite effect and the schools started to degrade and they slipped, even to this day public schools seem to be trying to rebound from intergration. Hey atleast you can say whites are not getting a better education than black kids. I dont mean that in any way as a positive!

[beardown54]

Originally Posted by Southern man

This looks like a good place to post this link..

Is Massachusetts more racist than Mississippi, as Chief Justice Roberts hints? - Yahoo! News

I grew up on the north shore of Chicago. It was not normal to see a black person in the town I grew up in, and my high school had maybe 3 or 4 black students out of a total student population of around 4000. People in the northern cities definitely have racist tendencies; Chicago is very de facto segregated to this day.

I recently spent time in Mississippi. To my surprise, not once did I identify racist overtones during my casual conversations with resident Mississippians, regardless of their race. Perhaps northern cities should take a lesson from the southern states on 21st century race relations

[EarlVanDorn]

Originally Posted by jhadorn

I thought it sounded off as well... Mississippi is overrun with public schools that are 95% black?

That isn't true. Mississippi public schools average are closer to 50/50. For the state average, the link below show 46.1% white, 50.1% black, and the rest is other.

Mississippi Education - Profile on Mississippi Education and Schools

This link shows the racial makeup of every school district.

Mississippi School District Demographics

There are exceptions, such as Mound Bayou, but it's the only one with a black student population greater than 89%. Mound Bayou is 98.3%.

If a school is mostly white or black it usually reflects the racial makeup of the county or city the school is in.

jhadorn, Are you really from Mississippi?

The link you show gives the racial demographics of the COMMUNITY. Mississippi has a lot of schools that are 99% black. Generally, if the school age population in a community is 65 percent or more black then the public school will be 95-99 percent black and most white children (and some blacks) will attend private school.

Examples of all-black or virtually all-black public schools serving racially mixed communities: Yazoo City, Sharkey-Issaquena, Humphreys County, Leland, Hollandale, Indianola, Greenwood, Clarksdale, Holly Springs, Aberdeen, and the list could go on and on.

[LandOfIceAndSnow]

Originally Posted by ck2007

I think it really depends on where you go. You will be fine though. I have always lived in South MS. I grew up on the Coast and once I was done with school I moved a little more inland. I think the Coast is one of our states largest "stirring pots". You have so many races and everyone seems to get along (for the most part). I do find though, that as young adults and even some older, the racism doesn't really exist (again, this depends on where you go) Its more common among the younger people (and the much older) I really dislike topics like this because there's always someone who gets offended, even if its truth or not. The Coast is a funny place, from Bay St. Louis up until you get to Gulfport, is mostly white. Gulfport & Biloxi are the stirring pots, you have every race there. Ocean Springs is mostly white. And then to the East of Biloxi/Ocean Springs is mostly black. My high school was mostly black, And to be completely honest, the whites were the ones "getting our toes stepped on" the most. I had been on the receiving end of racism so many times, and not because I did anything, but just because I was there in the room. I wasn't addressed by my name, it was "hey white girl". And you'd often hear that - "that white boy, white girl". I've even been called honky, cracker, hell even "white trash" one time when another student and I had a disagreement over a review question in class. Everyone got along for the most part, but the moment there was a disagreement, the racism happened, it was almost like a defense mechanism. It was crazy. I always ignored it, I don't have a problem with blacks or any other race, it wouldn't make me a better person to make remarks back, or to even get hurt feelings about it, you just learn to let it go. Many blacks are still "angry", and some have raised their children with the same mindset. JUST as whites have done the same with their own children. I just can't believe things still have to be this way. America is never going to get along. Racism, especially with blacks and the slavery and all that, will always play a strong part in our Country. I hate to say that but it's the truth. The thing that really upsets me the most, is that the people who have that mindset, are so "proud" to be who they are, but yet they take advantage of nothing that other people fought so hard for them to have. People fought for them to have their freedom and rights, to be able to go to good schools, do everything that everyone else was allowed to do. But no one takes advantage of that anymore.
Anyway, point being, it really depends where you go. Racism is everywhere, as long as you don't actually make a racist remark towards someone you'll be fine. Just don't be surprised if you get your toes stepped on.
Man I feel like I've opened a can of worms on this one, its always such a risky subject. But I'm only telling the truth, I really wish things would change though.

I'm sure I'll be fine. I guess I'm just wondering how different it'll be. In Mpls It's really no thing to chill and chat about football, etc, with just about anyone. I just am wondering if it gets "cliquey" there.

You don't live near Natchez, do you?

[brickpatio]

Natchez has a mini-New Orleans mindset. They like their position high above the Mississippi, the historic buildings, and the surrounding densely wooded ridges and steep ravines. No one there seems to be in much of a hurry.