Leaders Discuss Schooling Woes Among Blacks

Church, community and school leaders who attended a round-table discussion Wednesday agreed that parents and the community need to wake up and come together to improve educational programs for black children.

The first step, some say, is to be more vocal about the slew of educational problems that face the black community.

“We have to be advocates for our children. The squeaky wheel gets the oil, and we have the most broken wheel of all, and we squeak the least. We have grown to accept those low expectations for our children,” Shirley Weber, vice president of the San Diego city school board, said.

Weber, an outspoken advocate of more African-American cultural offerings within the San Diego city schools curriculum, was one of 11 people who attended Wednesday’s meeting at the Martin Luther King Jr. Park and Recreation Center in the 6000 block of Skyline Drive. The event was sponsored by the Campaign for Parent Involvement in Education, the Urban League, the Assn. of African American Educators and IMAGINE (Involved Mothers Against Gangs in Neighborhoods Everywhere).

Besides a passionate discussion that repeatedly stressed parental involvement if blacks are to succeed in school, the meeting seemed like a preview to a rally set for 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday in Martin Luther King Jr. Park. The rally’s theme of “Wake Up: Save the Children” is aimed at getting parents involved in the schools.

“We cannot leave this matter to anyone else, we must confront it ourselves. We cannot leave our children unattended in the wilderness, we have a moral obligation to nurture and protect them,” said community activist Walter Kudumu, who heads the parent involvement group.

The rally, which will run from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m., will feature free food, entertainment, guest speakers and the video “Black Male: An Endangered Species.”