The People's Court

It's Tuesday, Decemeber 26, 2017. I'm sitting on my couch having just finished my lunch. (Just in case you are wondering, it was a chicken salad and spinach mini-hoagie on a wheat roll, a bag of spicy nacho Doritos, a cookie, and raspberry ice tea.)

I'm watching The People's Court with Judge Milian. The plaintiff in one case, Jason Smith, was suing a man who reneged on a payment for boat and car detailing services that the plaintiff provided. Mr. Smith, a 30-something year old Black man was a bit animated and "antsy" while presenting his case. Judge Milian commented on his restlessness twice before telling him to have a seat because he was irritating her (her words).

I can understand how his animation and his being ansty might be a little unnerving. That's life. Sometimes people's voices, mannersims, habits, personalities, etc. annoy us. Her annoyance with Mr. Smith becomes a little precarious, however, because of her position of power being the judge. For all intents and purposes, he kind of has to do what she says. He did sit down as ordered.

You already know where I'm going. Black male students experience disproportionate representation in school discipline (suspension and expulsion) and in special education, particularly in high incidence categories like emotional behavioral disorders and learning disabilities.

I wonder if many of our colleagues, to whom the balance of power tilts in the student/teacher relationship, are just annoyed with our young African American male students. 🤔

I wonder if instead of finding ways to teach how he best learns, some of us de facto embrace exclusionary pedagogical stances or default to special education referral processes.🤔

"Well, we can't just think about our African American male students! What about our female students or boys and girls of other ethnic groups?"

The overrepresentstion of our Black male students in suspension and expulsion tracts and in high incidence special education tracts tells me we haven't been thinking about our African American male students too much at all.

Jason Smith won his case. Many of our young Black men are also winning in the classroom, in boardrooms, in business, in college, and in life. As with many brothers with whom I speak, *our* winning isn't enough, though. We want all of our young brothers to experience success as well. The classroom, from preschool onward, is one of many places to scrutinize and mobilize.