School seminar near Chicago sparks civil rights, race debate
WINNETKA, Ill. — When a largely white public school nestled in Chicago’s wealthiest suburbs planned a daylong civil rights seminar, it drafted two National Book Award winners as keynote speakers and crafted a syllabus that would be the envy of most liberal arts colleges.
But New Trier, a high-achieving, 4,000-student high school regularly ranked among the nation’s best, found itself stepping into the minefield of the national dialogue on race and civil rights. Some parents and conservative groups have deemed the event during Black History Month “radical” and “divisive.” Dueling petitions circulated, heated emails were exchanged and hundreds of people packed a school board meeting beyond capacity.
While New Trier’s demographics and resources aren’t reflective of many public schools, the debate highlights the complications of teaching civil rights when much of the country struggles to discuss race. Some educators worry their work will become more difficult after a polarizing election that’s fueled divisions, even in homogenous and largely Democratic areas like the upscale Lake Michigan suburbs making up New Trier.
For educators the goal is simple.