Saturday, January 17, 2009

THIS IS STILL HAPPENING???!!!

I just saw this in the paper today, it seems that in Charleston Miss. they still have separate proms for Black and White students. The actor Morgan Freeman(a graduate of this High School) had volunteered to foot the bill for an integrated prom back in 1997 ,the students were all for it but the parents and the school board wouldn't hear of it and ignored the offer. Now in 2006 a film maker had learned about Freeman's offer for the prom and asked him if he would make the offer again and this time they would do a documentary about it. Freeman made the offer again and this time the offer was accepted by the school board and grudgingly by parents. The film maker interviewed students (many) and any parents willing to talk (only a handful) during the build up to the prom. He also followed several students to film what their lives were like. It seems that during all the preparations for the integrated prom the film maker found out that a separate "Whites Only" prom had also been organized. Obviously the subject matter of this documentary is the racism that still exists in this town and probably many other towns like it. The film-Prom Night in Mississippi is being presented at the Sundance Film Festival.
I really couldn't get my head around the fact that this sort of racism still happens... I know that racism still exists I've been there and know first hand about it, but to still have separate proms is outrageous, do the Black students have to sit in the back of the school bus too? It totally boggles the mind that we are still so backwards. It really pisses me off too!

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Amen sister!

Rajesh &Shankari said...

I cannot believe that something like this still happens.

  © Blogger template Coozie by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP