Monday, March 15, 2004

Sherri Gragg: Franklin school board diversity push reveals community divide





"In recent weeks, it has become evident to us as a community that lines are drawn here too. There are lines between rich and poor and still others between white, black and Hispanic. We have drawn lines between 'our children' and 'their children.' At times, such as when the Franklin Special School District board expressed its commitment to equality, it seemed we would reach for the higher plane. Then at other times, the cry of 'my child' reached such deafening proportions we could no longer hear the cry of the child down the street, or the child across town."



"Moments of bitter disappointment followed those of shining hope. In the end, not much changed. Although a few neighborhoods have been rezoned, Liberty Elementary will begin next year with most of the overwhelming challenges they faced in this one. Poplar Grove remains untouched except for the monumental challenge to diversify in the next two years."



"While some parents breathed a sigh of relief, others breathed a sigh of discouragement. Perhaps the most marked difference is that now some of us realize with new awareness, and possibly for the first time, just how divided we are. As we gaze into that ugly reality, we wonder how we can possibly mend the divide."



The Tennessean

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