By Rev. Dorothy S. Boulware, Word in Black
A student who misbehaves in Houston, Texas, might find himself in the library — or what used to be the library. Nowadays, students looking for reading resources from a library would find no librarian, only a few books, and the space occupied by students who are in trouble. They might find what used to be the library is now an in-school detention center.
This is the situation that has captured the attention of the social justice ministry of Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church in Houston.
“With all of the challenges that face Brown and Black children, their education should not be subjected to these sorts of roadblocks,” the Rev. Dr. Angela Ravin-Anderson, head of the ministry, tells Word In Black.
She says their first instinct was to put a stop to the detention libraries as soon as possible.
“So we began a writing campaign to make our voices heard, to let the powers-that-be know they don’t know what they’re doing. We went to the school board meeting and presented close to two thousand letters we’d collected at church.”
Ravin-Anderson says there was such an outpouring of support at the church that they’ve now started a second campaign.
“We know how critical it is for children to be on point with reading by third grade, so we were very concerned.”
Rev. Ravin-Anderson says books would be in the library, although the librarians would not be there.
“How do you associate something fun with someplace you go when you’re in trouble? The libraries were reconfigured into detention centers.”
Houston neighbor Sandra Thomas initially thought it might be a good idea when she heard about it, but that soon changed.
“It was presented to me as a way to keep children in school, where they’d be safe, rather than send them home because they misbehaved,” Thomas says. “But when I realized it meant the librarians were losing their jobs and the children would be left to their own devices for help with their reading, that was an entirely different story.”
She says it was a real shock to the entire community.
Wheeler Avenue’s outrage is equally shared by the Houston branch of the NAACP.
“Nelson Mandela stated that the clearest depiction of a nation’s character is seen in how it treats its children. That needs to sink in deeply because what we are witnessing presently in HISD are actions towards our children that are beyond egregious,” said NAACP Houston President Dr. James Dixon, according to the Houston Defender.
“The thought of closing and repurposing libraries in schools is not only insulting, but it’s also repulsive,” Dixon said. “It reveals a measure of disrespect and disregard for our children’s need to have access to the best and most functional libraries and schools available. And that includes professional staff.”
This article originally appeared in Word in Black.
