Intergrated Book Tour with author Dr. Noliwe Rooks

We are big fans of the Dr. Noliwe Rooks's books. We talk up her book Cutting School: The Segrenomics of American Education and recently celebrated A Passionate Mind in a Passionate Pursuit : The Vision of Mary McCloud Bethune with the Detroit Public Library. Our community of Educators, History buffs, Parents and community memembers are in for treat with is awardwinning Scholar Noliwe Rooks new book Integrated.

We are partnering with Wayne State University College of Education. We welcome Staff, Students and Alumni to join in celebrating Integrated and to find insight in the rich conversation and meeting the author.

To join this event:

There are book tickets and 2 for 1( two people one book tickets ) at this link. WSU College of Education consult with your leadership for one card or other admission. The event will include a conversation about the book, a question and answer time and a book signing line with the Dr. Rooks. The time for the event may extend to an hour and a half. If you have questions please email [email protected] or call our bookstore.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

A powerful, incisive reckoning with the impacts of school desegregation that traces four generations of the author’s family to show how the implementation of integration decimated Black school systems and did much of the Black community a disservice.

On May 17, 1954 the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education determined that racial segregation in schools was unconstitutional. Heralded as a massive victory for civil rights, the decision's goal was to give Black children equitable access to educational opportunities and clear a path to a better future. Yet in the years following the ruling, schools in predominantly Black neighborhoods were shuttered or saw their funding dwindle, Black educators were fired en masse, and Black children faced discrimination and violence from their white peers as they joined resource-rich schools that were ill-prepared for the influx of new students.
Award-winning interdisciplinary scholar of education and Black history Noliwe Rooks weaves together sociological data and cultural history to challenge the idea that integration was a boon for Black children. She tells the story of her grandparents, who were among the thousands of Black teachers fired following the Brown decision; her father, who was traumatized by his experiences at an almost exclusively-white school; her own experiences moving from a flourishing, racially diverse school to an underserved inner-city one; and finally her son and his Black peers, who over half-century after Brown still struggle with hostility and prejudice from white teachers and students alike. She also shows how present-day discrimination lawsuits directly stem from the mistakes made during integration.
At once assiduously researched and deeply engaging, Integrated tells the story of how education has remained both a tool for community progress and a seemingly inscrutable cultural puzzle. Rooks' deft hand turns the story of integration's past and future on it's head, and shows how we may better understand and support generations of students to come.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Noliwe Rooks is the L. Herbert Ballou University Professor of Africana Studies, and the chair of Africana Studies at Brown University. Her work explores how race and gender both impact and are impacted by popular culture, social history, and political life in the United States. She studies the cultural and racial implications of beauty, fashion, and adornment; race, capitalism and education, and the urban politics of food and cannabis production. Rooks has received research funding from the Ford Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, and the Woodrow Wilson School among others. She is the author of five books, and a regular contributor to outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Chronicle of Higher Education, TIME, and NPR.

“An indispensable and brilliantly crafted examination of the impact of integration on Black children and the broader trajectory of America’s democracy. Rooks is one of the most admired scholars in education today, and her writing style is nothing short of magical. With remarkable ease and accessibility, she weaves together generations of history and meticulous research into deeply engaging and thought-provoking narratives that are essential for understanding the future of education...With so much uncertainty facing education today, Integrated is a book that must find its way into the hands of every teacher, parent, and high school student, as it reminds us that the failures of the past do not have to become the permanent reality of our future.”
—Bettina Love, New York Times bestselling author of Punished for Dreaming
“A vivid account of the emotional and economic damage done to generations of children of color. . . . A powerful and uncompromising indictment of the public school system.”
—Kirkus Reviews

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