Race, Class, And The Struggle For Power In Bed-Stuy Schools

By Amy Zimmer, Chalkbeat

Originally published on Friday, December 20

Over the course of eight episodes, the School Colors podcast dove deep into the past and present of Central Brooklyn’s education system.

To celebrate the conclusion of this citizen journalism project from Brooklyn Deep, Chalkbeat hosted an event at the Brooklyn Public Library on Dec. 17 with the podcast’s producers Mark Winston Griffith and Max Freedman along with NeQuan McLean, president of Bedford-Stuyvesant’s Community Education Council for District 16.

Chalkbeat reporter Christina Veiga led a conversation that touched on the process of putting together the series, as well as the thorny subjects that School Colors raised in such a thought-provoking way: race, class, and the struggle for power.

The creators also talked about what might be next for the podcast now that it’s wrapped up. Its themes are still very much on the minds of New Yorkers as the Department of Education focuses on school integration plans in District 16 and beyond.

“What we’ve been talking about is the idea of perhaps putting together a curriculum that could be used in schools and PTA and community-based organizations that can be used as this city is making changes, not just in schools but in institutions,” Winston Griffith said. “We want to be a part of helping to have that conversation.”

School Colors recorded the event and released it Friday as a surprise bonus episode. You can listen to the event here.

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat, a nonprofit news organization covering public education. Sign up for their newsletters here.