"Speak Out" is an expression of opinion from the Editorial Board of WBTV, and is presented by General Manager, Nick Simonette.
There's a racial battle brewing inside the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School System.
Is the district keeping its word when it comes to diversifying classrooms?
This dad brought this to our attention.
He's fighting to keep his son enrolled at Hopewell High.
Hopewell, he argued, IS diverse.
But C-M-S wants his son to attend West Charlotte...a school closer to their home, but about 90-percent African-American.
CMS parent Britton McGill says,
"Close proximity wasn't taken into consideration last year when referring to our home school so it shouldn't be now."
One of C-M-S' guiding principles is..."Diversity is key to a good education."
It exposes students to a variety of cultures and backgrounds, and better prepares them for "the real world."
But the system acknowledges that's a tall order.
Why?
Not all Charlotte communities are diverse.
A neighborhood school ends up reflecting the area it's in.
C-M-S also states it won't force the issue to make classrooms diverse.
So will our classrooms only get more segregated?
We hope not.
We also wonder: "How can the public expect the school system to diversify its classrooms when -- candidly -- many Charlotte neighborhoods don't do the same?"
We'll be honest.
We don't know how to suddenly create more diversity in neighborhoods OR schools.
But we do know it's time for C-M-S...the community...the government...EVERYONE!...to work together to find that solution.
After all, education needs to move forward and not backward when it comes to diversity.
Tell us what YOU think. SpeakOut@wbtv.com.
