Apartheid (Afrikaans pronunciation: [ɐˈpartɦɛit]; an Afrikaans[1] word meaning ‘the state of being apart’, literally ‘apart-hood‘[2][3])
The definition above, from Wikipedia, is my rationale for using the word in my previous post. I was describing a system that forbade the mingling of peoples in the most common of living situations. If you read closely, you would see that I deliberately singled out two aspects of real apartheid that are practiced in schools. That was the sole intent. Not only was I not trivializing apartheid, I was noting how base and inhumane it is to ban intermingling in eating and going to the bathroom. In any venue, and especially in real apartheid.
That was my rationale. I intended no disrespect in any way to freedom fighters and to those who overthrew apartheid. No trivialization was intended at all. I have always been against all apartheid, and personally, as a child, spoke up about separate water fountains in Washington DC.
However, it is clear from some of the angry comments directed my way that I was insensitive or at least unthinking about using such a term to make a point. I am sorry for the anger and upset I have caused to anyone offended. My goal, indeed, was to generate thought and discussion – as always – and so for those who were properly angered I clearly failed on two counts. I apologize for my thoughtless choice of language.
The great thing about a blog and the Internet is that you can learn from others. I pride myself on so doing. I usually thank my critics, and I take my lumps publicly. (It is I, after all, who moderates my own blog. I publish almost every comment, and I typically respond to even my worst critics.)
Let’s keep talking.
At the suggestion of a concerned reader, I took down the offending post and re-wrote it to make the same points in a more helpful way.
PS: Some readers are not satisfied with the apology and my removal of the offending post and related comments (though removing the offending post was done in response to one of the critics; the deleted comments referred specifically to that post, so I deleted them. People were free to re-post but didn’t and have made all sorts of accusations of me as a result). And a fairly extensive harsh criticism of me made its way into Twitter, for those of you who wrote saying ‘most people were probably not offended.’
At the request of one critic, I have re-posted the original article.
Readers: before we put this post and its history to bed, what are your thoughts? What lessons can we all learn here?
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18 Responses
I wasn’t offended at all by your blog post. I think we’re big boys and girls and we understand the horrors of apartheid and can separate that from the analogy. OK…it was a big leap from South Africa to the cafeteria but…as a Principal you did make me think about eating with kids more often. Thanks Grant.
I don’t think that your blog post was anything other than thought-provoking. It is obvious that you were not in any way trivializing apartheid. You were being shocking in – I think – an entirely acceptable way to get us to think about practices which can often go unexamined. Keep up the good work!
Grant, your post wasn’t thoughtless. It was thought-provoking. You raised a question in a provocative way. Of course apartheid is different than the situation you describe in schools. You were just drawing out the comparison for sake of a thought experiment. Comments that essentially say that such a use of the word or comparison is off-limits are being needlessly limiting. Don’t limit yourself from provocative ideas just because a few people aren’t going to agree. That’s the point of being provocative. Certainly there are some comparisons that would be inappropriate, but in my opinion you did not cross that line–or even get close to it. Remember that most people who are fine with the post aren’t going to comment, so you are likely hearing from a very small subset of readers.
Thank you, Grant, for “an apology and an explanation” … “for those who were properly angered.” For whatever it’s worth, I sincerely appreciate and respect your willingness to explore the difference between the intent of your original post, and its impact. CT
Kia ora Grant
I’d also like to thank you for the apology & explanation. The sincerity came through clearly.
I enjoy reading your blog and have found it so useful when thinking of my thoughts and actions as a principal in a secondary high school in New Zealand.
Thanks.
Your words didn’t offend me, but I did go “wha-aaat?”
As the writer above points out, there are always “givens” to consider. Issues like student/faculty equality rarely come up these days although they did in the Seventies.
That said, I can’t imagine anything worse than eating in the student cafeteria! In a smaller dining room maybe. It does have something to do with size and time. I never banned students from eating or drinking in my secondary classroom — it was a school rule — because I occasionally drank coffee or water and ate an apple or whatever mid-morning.
No offense taken.
But the real apartheid in schools always has been and continues to be something closer to the real thing: the sorting and tracking of students by test scores. When you can walk down the halls of a comprehensive high school and guess the class level by the race of the students in the class, you’re not just seeing the vestiges of racism, you’re seeing it at work.
In the interests of keeping an accurate record, I would also recommend leaving a copy of the original post intact. It provides a needed context to the comment thread, and provides a good, instructive model of how a poor choice of metaphor can obscure a point.
I think the context is clear – more to the point, I edited the original post, so it doesn’t exist separately anymore.
If I can figure out how to post it without starting the same thing all over again, I will.
It seems to me that if your critics spent as much time and energy working toward the betterment of public education as they do criticizing your blog, we wouldn’t find ourselves in a crisis that I believe is going to send our entire system into the abyss. So many people spend so much time complaining, when we should all be working together to seek a better way for the generation that we claim as the future. I actually have some ideas, but I’m JUST a teacher. (tongue in cheek) What do I know?
I am with you, even as I acknowledge my error. I have lived my life in the belief that fixing things is what matters.
It is that wonderful difference between ‘connotative’ and ‘denotative’ meanings. With a slightly less incendiary word, it could provide a teachable moment in the classroom.
Although I understand other’s reactions, I appreciate your creative use of language to make your point. I am sure your purpose was to get the attention of your audience. You have succeeded. And so, let the conversation continue on this important topic.
I personally accept your apology. IMHO I thought you were just trying to “ruffle our feathers” to make us reflect and think about what we are doing in our schools.
Thank you, Grant. Your response is appreciated.
It was a poor post, but big deal. What gets me is the entitlement some commenters feel. It is Grant’s blog, so he can do as he wishes. No one has a “right” to be heard on someone else’s blog – they can create their own blog if they wish.
I appreciate your words and thinking. To be frank, from my perspective, I never suspected your intent or character. Anyone who’s ever read your blog, articles, and whatnot, knows your philosophical bent. I don’t mean that as a critique of anyone so much as what I thought of all the comments. I took a pulse of my own thoughts and feelings. As I reflected, I was led to thinking about what I tell my students – that they should always reflect and take measure of their words, thoughts, actions, and the company they keep. As I thought about that, I thought about how writing a blog falls into all of those things, not just the words, but also the thinking, the actions, and the readers, who are the company you keep in a way because your blog creates that forum of like minded people who enjoy the dialogue. Thank you for your response above as it reminded me once again why I enjoy reading your blog – it’s your honest take on teaching and learning and yes, not being afraid to say hey, I’m sorry, no disrespect meant.