Step Back, Step Up

This week I read Separate is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation by Duncan Tonatiuh and One Last Word by Nikki Grimes.

Separate is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation by Duncan Tonatiuh follows the real-life story of Sylvia Mendez in Westminster, California and how her family, along with others, fought for the right for their children to be admitted to public schools. When trying to enroll in their nearby school, they were denied because they were of Mexican heritage, though they were never explicitly told that. Her father tried to get a petition going to protest the injustice but wasn’t getting very far until the lawyer David Marcus helped them. He got more families involved and presented the case to the court. They won, but the school board appealed the decision. Many minority organizations all over the world then sent letters to the judge supporting their case, and they won again. Duncan Tonatiuh is both the author and illustrator for this book, which won the Pura Belpré Award. He grew up in Mexico and immigrated to America. His illustrations are inspired by Pre-Columbian art, and he aims to create relevant images and stories that honor the past.

In the above spread, the illustrator/author recognize racism against Mexicans. They choose to include a fairly common scene that actually was replicated many times over in real life, with all races (except Caucasians of course). The white children are having fun in their white-only pool while the Mexican children look on, with their heads tilted down and mouths closed to indicate sadness. The white children almost seem to be rubbing their privilege in their peers’ faces. They have their mouths open to signify their enjoyment, while one white boy appears to have a hand raised to block out the sight of the Mexican children behind the bars. In fact, the fence that they are behind looks like a prison, which is interesting considering our current events. I think the most striking part of this illustration is the sign on the “public” pool; Mexican people were equivalent to dogs.

In this spread, the Mendez’s are trying to rally other parents into fighting back against the racist school systems by signing a petition. Other people were afraid of the consequences of such, which is why they are seen turning away. What is interesting though is that their children are looking back, like they want to participate. I think one of the stereotypes of Mexican people, that still exists today, is the concept of “dirty Mexicans”. I guess that arose from many Mexican people being farmers, but in this illustration, and throughout the book, every Mexican person is dressed respectably and is clean. In fact, besides their skin color, they look no different than their white peers. Another stereotype that is refuted in this spread is that Mexicans are ignorant and dumb. Here they are seen using their intelligence to join together to fight back legally through a petition (which is written in English no less).

The Mendez’s are seen to overcome the injustice that is delivered to them through the school system by going through the courts. They know that segregation is not right, morally or legally, so they act. The story begins with Sylvia upset of how her white peers treat her in her newly segregated school, but it ends with her remembering how hard her family and others fought for this right, and she holds her head high in spite of the nasty things kids continue to say to her. Together, and with the help of empathetic lawyers, the Mexican people in that county won their educational rights back. They worked hard to find people that would support them. When their victory was repealed, minority organizations all over the country sent them support letters. It is important to remember that the Mendez family did not win these rights alone. They, along with many, many others, had to work hard and seek out connections. One voice will get lost in the crowd, but many voices cannot be tuned out. These illustrations support that and teach children how to spot racism and stereotypes when they occur. If you are getting something that someone else is not, ask, “Why?” (children are naturally great at that anyway).

 

One Last Word by Nikki Grimes is a book of poems set in the Harlem Renaissance era, in which Nikki uses mentor poems written by various authors to create her own poems using the Golden Shovel method. The settings range from outdoors to the afterlife to present day to dreams etc. Nikki creates many fictional characters, such as Cora, Blake, and Damian. Mentor poets in this book include Gwendolyn Bennett, Countee Cullen, William Waring Cuney, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Langston Hughes, Georgia Douglas Johnson, Clara Ann Thompson, Jean Toomer, and Nikki Grimes. Nikki Grimes is a poet and artist from New York City who has traveled the world. She was born in Harlem and had a troubled youth, which influences much of her writing. This book is a counter narrative in that it defies stereotypes. Coming out of slavery, most white people could not even imagine black people having thoughts, opinions, and artistic ability. The Harlem Renaissance proved them wrong. This book showcases that work and is an important reminder today that there are many role models for minority children and adults to look to in the African American community that are literate, beautiful, proud, and deep-thinkers. Poets from the Harlem Renaissance lived through slavery, so their emotions and expressions were real and impactful. I think today we still envision the African American community as impoverished and brute. This book counters these commonly held beliefs. The characters in the book all speak towards their anger and frustrations towards the unfair world they live in, but how they focus on something outside of themselves to persevere. They know that a time will come when the injustices against their people will be no more; they hope. They know who they are and they are proud of that, which is something everyone needs to understand, white or black. This is best told through an excerpt from Nikki Grimes’s poem “Jabari Unmasked”:

One look, and we are neatly judged this gang, these thugs, these dark delinquents, in debt to society. Meanwhile, you fail to see that we are college-bound (more than a few), prepared to pay attention to psychology, the sciences, the arts, to thoughtfully unfurl the scrolls of human history. Instead, you see a thief who uses guile.

Clara Ann Thompson’s “The Minor Key” refutes oppression, and instead focuses on the eternal:

What matters if the world forgets, Thy deeds to laud, thy tale to tell? If God remembers, all is well; With Him who sees not as we see, No life is tuned to minor key.

This book is a really strong, beautiful, and wonderful platform to open up discussions with students about racism and oppression, historically and currently. Even if a student has never been discriminated against based on their race, chances are someone somewhere has put them down about something they can’t control or is a part of their identity. This book can connect to anyone about overcoming obstacles and hoping for a better future, while still be a kind person. It provides an empathic, empowering viewpoint through its honest questions and internal thoughts.

Here is my Golden Shovel poem, the striking line taken from Jean Toomer’s “As the Eagle Soars”:

Quiet Purpose

Sometimes I feel like it

is demanding to live in a world that always shouts, always takes

away peoples’ voices because they are not in line with the status quo. A

common struggle, yet not common enough it seems. Well-spent

is the time in listening to others, who live differently or are from a different lifetime.

Who stops to catch their breath anymore? Who truly hears and

acts when wrongs are recognized? Perhaps

we need stronger ears and quieter mouths, more

silence than noise. To

truly be a diverse nation, to crystallize

soft hearts, don’t only consider your mirror image, in

whom you see yourself. Look into the eyes of suffering with us.

Our purpose is to love that

in which is unlovable. We are made to serve others, cultivate beauty, and sacrifice ourselves, for

we are all the same. Which

person can claim that they are better? Whom is without fault? We

are all people. For in Him we live and move and exist.