New York school combats racism by segregating students

A private school in New York City, Fieldston Lower School, is taking a controversial approach to racism and race issues by dividing its third-, fourth-, and fifth-graders into groups by race during a five week program, then bringing them all back together to share their thoughts in mixed settings.

L’Heureux Lewis-McCoy, a professor of sociology and black studies at the City University of New York, said that the idea of dividing students into these “affinity groups” is actually a good idea.

“The goal is to separate kids apart to get them to talk about the realities that they come from, to see the diversity within them and then to re-engage in a conversation not simply about ‘you look different than me,’ but what is the baggage and the weight that we carry into the room and how do we create a more equitable, diverse and just environment,” he said.

Sachi Feris, a blogger who runs Raising Race Conscious Children, said that the program can be especially useful in showing white children the privilege that they might not have even noticed in their own race.

“Because whiteness isn’t always named and is treated as invisible and sort of the neutral norm in our society … you have a situation where white children don’t even necessarily know the word ‘white’ and know that they’re white and know what the role of whiteness plays in terms of white privilege and power in our society,” Feris said.

“So I think that when that’s the case, having an affinity group where white students can explore that and learn about that together is really, really powerful.”