Black Kids on Milwaukee Buses May Slip into School Lore

Eugene Kane:

It could be the end of an era.

Black children and yellow school buses long have been inextricably linked in the history of education in America. It started with the historic 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision that allowed for school desegregation in cities like Milwaukee. That led to widespread busing movements that allowed black students to attend classes outside their neighborhoods at predominantly white schools.

A decision by the Milwaukee School Board last week to drastically reduce the amount of busing in the district will alter a fundamental relationship that has existed in this city for generations of students.

But what the Milwaukee School Board did was not a statement about the racial makeup of the city's public schools, many of which are predominantly African-American. School Board member Michael Bonds, the architect of the plan, says busing isn't about desegregation anymore.

"When the district is 88% minority, it's not about race," Bonds told me. "It's about the fact we've spent $57 million on a failed policy."

Related by Alan Borsuk: Busing Change Won't Be Easy. Madison Mayor Dave's proposed low income housing expansion throughout Dane County may require more busing.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at May 1, 2008 4:33 AM
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