Both sides now : the story of school desegregation's graduates /

Seeking to determine if school racial desegregation benefitted the people who participated, Wells and her coauthors conducted 540 interviews with former students, policy makers, and family members from six high schools located in separate regions of the US. The authors chose graduates from the class of 1980 because desegregation reached its peak that year and, in subsequent years, public policies reestablished segregation. Thus, these graduates had opinions about both social trends. For example, many of the graduates believed that desegregation enabled them to look favorably upon people of other races. Although many graduates were disappointed to find neighborhoods segregated, some white graduates disapproved of later efforts to reduce racism. Despite these contradictions, Wells and her coauthors conclude that school desegregation was worth the effort, and they offer policy suggestions to reintroduce it. Readers interested in a similar study of one school district should consult Susan E. Eaton's book, The Other Boston Story (CH, Nov'01, 39-1703) or Edward Morris's book, An Unexpected Minority (CH, Jun'06, 43-6027). Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above J. Watras University of Dayton