Black Children and Education in Chicago: Legacy of Discrimination, Divestment, and Exclusion

The most American city: Chicago, race, and inequality by Jonathan Grabinsky and Richard V. Reeves

Racial and ethnic identity is thought to be causal in determining a host of socially relevant outcomes. Scientists have attempted to empirically document how health, employment, relationships, and education are driven by the social construction of race and ethnicity in the United States. Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is one of the largest and oldest educational districts in America. It is no secret that race has long been a determining factor in educational outcomes for Black children living in Chicago. Historically, Black families in Chicago have faced systemic racism and discriminatory practices in the form of neighborhood redlining, neighborhood divestment, and disproportionately higher exposure to toxic chemicals and other environmental hazards. All combined, Black Chicago children have endured disproportionately higher rates of negative life outcomes related to limited access to quality education ever since all schools were legally obligated to accept them. What does the future hold for Black children in Chicago? Where are the practical pathways to upward social mobility through education? How have historical events contributed to our current situation? Great questions! Let’s start unpacking…

Housing insecurity is at the top of the list of factors contributing to the continued disparity in educational outcomes for Black children in Chicago. Governmentally imposed racial and economic segregation of the city led by Mayor Richard J. Daley continues to have lingering effects of higher concentrations of poverty and disinvestment in predominantly Black neighborhoods. One of the most harmful effects of neighborhood divestment is the underfunding of schools. Schools with fewer resources and less qualified teachers are known to be prone to disorganization, diminished student performance, and broken relationships with the community the school is intended to serve.

Chicago’s Decades of Segregation Feed South and West Side Hardships By Shruti Singh and Isis Almeida

Disciplinary practices in CPS seemingly target Black students for higher punitive outcomes resulting in Chicago Police Department than their white peers. For example, it is more common to see a Black student be suspended or…