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I've been pondering over the issues of education and the inner city at great length since last Spring when I registered Ruthie for kindergarten. We are a white, middle class family living in a diverse community with lower class and working poor families. On more than one occasion I've heard my neighborhood referred to as "the inner city."
75% of the kids at Ruthie's elementary school qualify for free or reduced lunch. As a white girl, she is in the minority 17% of the population. There is a sign on all the doors leading into her school that reads, "This Is a Weapons Free Zone." I shudder to think why this is even necessary to mention to kids under the age of ten.
I will admit there are times I considered transferring Ruthie to a different school - one with higher test scores and fewer kids on assistance - and even filled out the necessary paperwork. I wrestled with my ideals, because I never wanted to be that "white flight" family who sequestered itself from people who are different, who fled the "evils" of the inner city simply because I had the means to. My ideals told me I could be part of the solution, that if I stayed I could make a difference in my community. But at the same time, I wasn't sure I was willing to gamble my child's education to follow those ideals.
As a friend put it, "It's kind of like the difference between reading the communist manifesto as a naive college freshman, versus actually living in the Soviet Union."
In the end, we decided to stay in the school. For now. Someday I'll write a post about the reasons why we decided to stay, but for now I just want to share three things that have influenced me the most over the last few months: a sermon, a podcast, and a television show.
It Takes a City to Raise a Child - Pastor & Author Tim Keller.
The community I live in doesn't even come close to the dense urban environment of New York City, and neither does Seattle, for that matter. But I still found this lecture compelling since so many white, middle class families are fleeing urban areas in general for the seclusion and "safety" of the suburbs.
Keller gives three cons and eight pros to raising your kids in the city, and begins with the thesis that living in the city enhances factors related to kids embracing the Christian faith of their parents. As a teaser, I'll list those positive factors here, but you really must listen to the 1+ hour podcast.
- If you raise kids in the city, they will believe they are living in the real world, and will have realistic expectations of life. (i.e. "Friends" who work at coffee houses can NOT afford apartments that big)
- It undercuts their self righteousness toward you and your faith. Kids want to believe their parents don't understand the real world, but when they see you interacting with city life, they will have respect for you.
- Your children will become more confident and self reliant, living in the city.
- Your kids will be better at handling diversity, and will have more diverse friendships. The essence of suburbia is zoning - racially, economically, etc. There's fewer people unlike you.
- The city pushes the family together and creates more coherence between home, work, and school. Relationally it's much more intense. Suburbia pushes everybody apart.
- In the city, your teenagers will more easily see a Christianity they can envision and respect because the churches are filled with young people they can identify with (does your sunday school teacher have glorious tatts?).
- You can help your kids start to process the real world by living in the city.
- In general, kids raised in cities do not have same pressure brought on them to conform because it is so diverse.
Keller mentions several times that we all think the suburbs is the best place to raise our kids, but in reality it may be more polarizing to families.
Think about it: we all get into our cars and go in different directions each day; our commutes take hours away from our family life; when our teenagers have friends, they drive around recklessly in a car together; we live in communities with people who are just like us in every way; our children aren't exposed to poverty unless they go on a mission trip; kids face an immense amount of pressure to conform.
I loved loved loved this lecture, and
