Stephen G. Young discusses the need for diversity in Haddonfield.
Not to take anything away from the HHMS girls’ swimming team for its excellent achievements, but one thing about the cover photo was startling to my eyes — there were no students of color. This is endemic to the entire school system. Haddonfield (and other towns) are about as segregated as the pre-1954 South. You can blame borough borders or any other technicality, but none can vitiate this disgrace. I frequently see crowds of pupils populating the sidewalks, with nary a black or brown face among them. New Jersey is indeed among the most segregated of states.
Day trips to Camden or other such activities are no substitute for a real solution. Actually, to be candid, these activities smack of guilt or are even patronizing.
The only solution is to invite children of color from surrounding Camden County communities to transfer to our schools. Set a goal: Say, 10 percent. Probably the state would provide aid as it does for other pupils per capita. But Haddonfield should do this regardless, because it’s the right thing to do, and because it would benefit all the pupils, of any color.
Right now, Haddonfield kids are raised in a white bubble. This does not prepare them for the world. In my 12 and a half years as a resident here, this situation has not changed. In that time, an entire generation has started and finished with the local schools, with almost everyone looking the same. School is only partially for academics.
It’s also for developing socialization skills that are critically important for personal success. Children of color should be welcomed here and preparations made so that each becomes just another kid, especially at lunchtime. The effort would be most successful if the pupils didn’t re-segregate themselves in the cafeteria, Haddonfield is practically a model community for the nation in almost every respect, but everyone knows of the de facto racial exclusion in its schools. This stain must be erased.
