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Open Letter to Bill de Blasio
from a proud graduate of one of those specialized high schools.
Dear Mayor,
I recently read of your plan to change the admissions process away from the Specialized High School Aptitude Test to accepting the top 7% of students from every public middle school. On the face of that, it seems to level the playing field. IF you only think about it from the lens of someone who defines people by their brownness. As a facilitator of diversity and inclusion workshops, I see the color of ones skin as one facet of what makes someone unique. You tout that “The Specialized High School Admissions Test isn't just flawed — it’s a roadblock to justice, progress and academic excellence”. I’m curious what those words mean to you, because we don’t seem to have the same comprehension of those terms.
Justice is defined as the quality of being just; righteousness, equitableness, or moral rightness by dictionary.com. It’s all about acting fairly, and in my first hand experience, as I sat and took the exam as a first generation immigrant, I wasn't asked about the amount of melanin in my skin. I wasn't asked how much my parents made or where in the city I lived. I sat next to other boys and girls, some who spoke other languages and others whose families lived in our community for decades. I went to school with people whose parents made more money than the GDP of some…
