Wilbur C. Rich - Black Mayors and School Politics: The Failure of Reform in Detroit, Gary, and Newark

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BLACK MAYORS AND SCHOOL POLITICS

GARLAND REFERENCE LIBRARY OF SOCIAL SCIENCE VOLUME 1048

BLACK MAYORS AND SCHOOL POLITICS

THE FAILURE OF REFORM IN DETROIT, GARY, AND NEWARK

WILBUR C. RICH

First published 1996 by Garland Publishing, Inc.

This edition first published in 2021 by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
and by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

Copyright 1996 by Wilbur C. Rich

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

Notice:
Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

Publisher's Note
The publisher has gone to great lengths to ensure the quality of this reprint but points out that some imperfections in the original copies may be apparent.

Disclaimer
The publisher has made every effort to trace copyright holders and welcomes correspondence from those they have been unable to contact.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Rich, Wilbur C.

Black mayors and school politics: the failure of reform in Detroit, Gary, and Newark / Wilbur C. Rich.
p. cm. (Garland reference library of social science; vol. 1048)
Includes index.
ISBN 0-8153-2066-3 (hc: alk. paper). ISBN 0-8153-2340-9 (pbk.: alk. paper)
1. Politics and educationMichiganDetroit. 2. Politics and educationIndianaGary. 3. Politics and educationNew JerseyNewark. 4. Afro-American mayorsMichiganDetroit. 5. Afro-American mayorsIndianaGary. 6. Afro-American mayorsNew JerseyNewark. 7. Detroit (Mich.)Politics and government. 8. Gary (Ind.)Politics and government. 9. Newark (N.J.)Politics and government. I. Title. II. Series: Garland reference library of social science; v. 1048.
LC90.M5R53 1996
379.73dc20 95-51042
CIP

ISBN 13: 978-1-03-216523-3 (hbk)
ISBN 13: 978-1-03-216670-4 (pbk)
ISBN 13: 978-1-00-324904-7 (ebk)

10.4324/9781003249047

To all the Rich women
who have taught in public schools
Lydia L. Wiggins Rich, my mother
Patricia Ann Rich Bell, my sister
Carolyn Rich Walker, my sister
Jean R. Miller Rich, my wife
Brenda Owen Rich, my sister-in-law.

Contents

1. Detroit School Politics
2. Gary School Politics
3. Newark School Politics
4. Black Mayors: Bystanders or Interlopers?
5. Rust-Belt Cities and Their Green-Belt States
6. Schools, Human Capital, and Race

1. Detroit School Politics
2. Gary School Politics
3. Newark School Politics
4. Black Mayors: Bystanders or Interlopers?
5. Rust-Belt Cities and Their Green-Belt States
6. Schools, Human Capital, and Race

1. xiv

Guide

Figures and Tables

1. Figures
   1. Figure 1-Detroit School Board Elections, 1970-1988
   2. Figure 2-Detroit School Millage Elections, 1968-1988
2. Tables

Preface

Some people believe that if inner-city black children had excellent schools, they would perform better in them. Well, maybe. Granted, schools are a part of the problem, but they are not all of the solution. Schools are only buildings where teachers, administrators, and students interact. Learning is a more much complex process. There are many forces arrayed against an inner city child that preclude him/her from mastering the education process. Among these forces are poverty, family instability, disruptive classroom environments, and incompetent teachers. There seems to be no end to research and speculation about how to overcome these forces. Compensatory education strategies such as Head Start, tracking, and privatization have not worked. The gap between black and white children continues to widen. Accordingly, we must face the fact that the repair of public schools, in general and inner city schools in particular, requires an unprecedented massive overhaul. Obviously, we should start at the local level, but the overall reform task is literally beyond the capacity of local government. No group realized this more than the black politicians who began taking over city politics at the end of the 1960s.

When I started this book I was searching for some evidence that black politicians were changing the status quo. What I found were highly politicized school systems continuing the status quo but in deep denial. Black politicians have succumbed to the mighty forces of what I call the public school cartel (PSC). After weathering several protracted battles for control of schools, the politicians surrendered to the PSC. This book will explain why and how black politicians lost the school reform fight.

The project began as a study of the relationship of black mayors to schools. I asked the question: Do black mayors make a difference for schools? If not, why? The study examines the period after the 1954 Brown decision and the outset of black challenges for the mayoralty in the late 1960s. I also include brief histories of the school system to highlight the roles African Americans played before the takeover of the city politics. It must be noted that school districts are separate special purpose governments charted by the state. Although mayors do not have formal control over schools, including those who appoint board members, their informal control can be significant. Despite their fiscal and political autonomy, no school district can safely ignore the mayor of their city.

Originally, this was designed as a two year project, but it became clear that more time was needed to fully understand this political situation. I chose three school systems for this study: Detroit, Michigan; Gary, Indiana; and Newark, New Jersey. The book presents a systematic survey of school politics in these three cities, giving particular emphasis to local reform efforts. This book differs from other books on the subject in its sustained consideration of the political calculations of the actors and the symbols they have used to promote their interest.

Research on the book began in 1989. It took five years to come up with a manuscript that could be read by colleagues. I must confess a new admiration for those who have kept the faith that American schools can be reformed. I have gone from being a true believer to an atheist. So this book will come out in the middle of a troubled Clinton Administration when the national attention has shifted to another agenda. The children in Detroit, Newark, and Gary who entered school the year this book was started are old enough to know how the lack of a political and pedagogic solution to their learning needs may handicap them for the rest of their lives.

Numerous individuals helped me understand school politics and black politics. Among the Detroiters were Coleman Young, Clara Rutherford, Bennett Nowicki, Alonzo Bates, Dr. Arthur Jefferson, John Elliot, Thomas Stallworth, and Dr. Ed Simpkin. Garyites included Richard Hatcher, Clarence Currie, Steve Morris, Patrica Dilts, Christine Swan Clay, James Dowdell, Dr. Ernest Jones, Heron Battle, Sandra Irons, Dr. Delia Burt, Darlene Maloney. Among the interviewees in Newark were Kenneth Gibson, Columbus Salley, Rebecca Doggett, Robert Braun, Wynona Lipman, Donald K. Tucker, and Daniel Gibson, Jr.

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