PICK YOUR ISSUE, PICK YOUR
ISSUE THAT LED TO THIS.
WE HAVE MAJOR POSTSECONDARY
EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS THAT
GRADUATED ZERO TEACHERS OF
COLOR.
TENS OF THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS.
WE CANNOT FIND A TEACHER THAT
LOOKS LIKE THE KIDS THEY ARE
TEACHING?
YOU DON'T NEED ANOTHER ONE THAT
LOOKS LIKE ME.
YOU NEED SOMEBODY IN THERE.
ALL THE RESEARCH SHOWS THAT.
WE ARE GOING TO CLOSE THE
ACHIEVEMENT GAP IN MINNESOTA.
WE ARE NOT GOING TO BLAME IT ON
THE KIDS.
WE ARE GOING TO BLAME IT ON US
NOT PUTTING EMPHASIS ON PUTTING
TEACHERS IN FRONT OF THEM.
THAT IS GOVERNOR WALZ
TALKING YESTERDAY ABOUT ONE OF
THE MANY ISSUES THAT COULD BE
TAKEN UP BY THE LEGISLATURE IN
A SPECIAL SESSION TO ADDRESS
RACIAL INEQUALITIES IN
MINNESOTA.
WE ARE JOINED NOW BY MICHAEL
WALKER, PHD STUDENT AT THE
UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA, ONE OF
OUR MIDMORNING CONTRIBUTORS.
MICHAEL, WE KNOW YOU ALSO ARE
THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF
BLACK STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
WITHIN THE MINNEAPOLIS PUBLIC
SCHOOL.
THIS IS YOUR LIFE'S WORK RIGHT
HERE THAT THE GOVERNOR IS
TALKING ABOUT.
CORRECT.
FIRST I WANT TO START OFF BY
SAYING, CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL
THE GRADUATES WHO HAVE BEEN
ABLE TO STAY FOCUSED AND MANAGE
THROUGH THIS TIME, BECAUSE IT
TOOK DEFINITELY A LOT OF
RESISTANCE AND RESILIENCE TO
GRADUATE IN A TIME LIKE THIS.
I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE
GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO THEM.
NO QUESTION ABOUT IT, RIGHT?
DISTANCE LEARNING CHALLENGES,
THE FUROR OVER CORONAVIRUS, AND
THEN THE STRONGEST UNREST THAT
WE HAVE HAD IN THE TWIN CITIES
IN OUR HISTORY.
ALL OF THIS AT ONCE.
YEAH, NO DOUBT.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE
TRYING TO DO, OBVIOUSLY, THE
DISTANCE LEARNING, IT TOOK US
AWAY FROM OUR STUDENTS FACE-TO-
FACE.
I HAVE A DYNAMIC TEAM I WORK
WITH, I WANT TO I DON'T WANT TO
ACT LIKE IT IS JUST ME DOING
THIS WORK.
RICHARD, JAMEL, KYOTO, NIKA, ESA
, THAN MYSELF, JUST TRYING TO
MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN BE
VISIBLE.
THE ONE THING THAT WE DID, AND
WE TALKED ABOUT IT, WE KIND OF
PUT ON OUR MASK AND WE GOT OUT
IN THE COMMUNITY AND STARTED TO
MR. ROGERS TALKED ABOUT WHEN
YOU SEE CHAOS AND WHATNOT, LOOK
FOR THE HELPERS.
THAT IS WHAT WE ARE TRYING TO
DO, BE HELPERS IN THIS PROCESS.
WE HELD FOOD DRIVES WITH
RALLIES AND MARCHES.
WE DID A HEALING CIRCLE FOR
STUDENTS VIRTUALLY.
SO JUST TRYING TO BE A SPACE
THAT PEOPLE CAN KIND OF LET
THEIR HAIR DOWN AND RELIEVE
SOME OF THOSE EMOTIONS.
BECAUSE AS YOU KNOW, THE SAME
TIME PEOPLE ARE DEALING WITH
EMOTIONS, WE AS ADULTS ARE
DEALING WITH OUR EMOTIONS AS
WELL.
SO THE PROCESS THAT IN THE SAME
TIME TRYING TO SUPPORT OTHERS
IN THE PROCESS.
MICHAEL, WE KNOW AND HAVE
KNOWN FOR QUITE A WHILE THAT
MINNEAPOLIS HAS ONE OF THE
BIGGEST, MOST PERSISTENT
ACHIEVEMENT GAPS BETWEEN BLACK
AND WHITE STUDENTS IN THE
UNITED STATES.
YOU ARE OBVIOUSLY DOING THE
WORK ON THE GROUND LEVEL.
THE GOVERNOR TALKED ABOUT
GETTING MORE TEACHERS OF COLOR.
BUT WHAT KIND OF MAJOR CHANGES
DO WE REALLY NEED TO SEE TO
START CLOSING THIS GAP?
WELL, A LOT OF IT IS, AGAIN,
DEFINITELY WHAT THE GOVERNOR
TALKED ABOUT, GETTING MORE
TEACHERS OF COLOR.
AND THE WAY WE HAVE TO GO ABOUT
THAT, SOMETIMES WE TRY TO
RECRUIT LATE AND WHAT I MEAN BY
RECRUITING LATE, WE RECRUIT
THEM ONCE THEY ARE IN COLLEGE.
WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY IN OUR
SCHOOL SYSTEM, WE HAVE STUDENTS
IN OUR SYSTEM FROM PRE-K TO
12th GRADE, RIGHT?
WHAT WE KNOW WITH ALL THE
DISPARITIES AROUND
DISPROPORTIONALITY IN CLASS,
THAT IS HOW WE HAVE TREATED OUR
BLACK STUDENTS THROUGHOUT THEIR
SCHOOLING EXPERIENCE.
WE HAVE TO ASK OURSELVES THE
QUESTION, WHY WOULD I WANT TO
BE A PART OF INSTITUTION OR
SYSTEM THAT HASN'T TREATED ME
PROPERLY?
SO WE HAVE TO DO A BETTER JOB
OF RECRUITING THE STUDENTS
WHILE THEY ARE IN OUR SYSTEM,
WHICH MEANS GIVING THEM A
BETTER EXPERIENCE.
THE OTHER PIECE, WE CAN DO
SIMPLE THINGS.
SOMETIMES WE LOOK AT THESE BIG
GRANDIOSE IDEAS.
SOME SIMPLE THINGS CAN BE, HAVE
YOU INTENTIONALLY ASKED A BLACK
STUDENT ANSWERED WITH THEM, YOU
WOULD BE A REALLY GOOD TEACHER
SOMEDAY.
WOULD YOU BE INTERESTED IN
GOING TO THE PRUSSIAN
PROFESSION OF EDUCATION?
TO PUT THAT THOUGHT IN THEIR
MINDS.
THAT'S POWERFUL, ISN'T IT,
MICHAEL?
THERE'S A LOT OF RESEARCH ON
HOW HAVING THAT INTERACTION
WITH THE TEACHER CAN DIRECTLY
LEAD TO PEOPLE GOING TO SCHOOL
TO BE A TEACHER.
CORRECT, CORRECT.
I JUST EVEN SPEAK FOR MYSELF, I
WAS WORKING FOR THE YMCA BEFORE
I GOT TO EDUCATION.
ONE OF MY TEACHERS, WAS MS.
WESTER GREEN, SHE TOLD ME I
WOULD BE A GOOD EDUCATOR, GOOD
EDUCATOR.
THAT WAS HOW I GOT MY MASTERS
IN COUNSELING.
I WAS BASICALLY ABOUT CABAL
CODES AT THAT TIME, BUT SHE
STAYED IN MY EAR AND BUILT THAT
UP IN ME.
AND I EVENTUALLY BECAME AN
EDUCATOR.
MICHAEL, YOU ARE, AS
MENTIONED, YOU ARE ON THE
GROUND.
YOU ARE ALSO A DAD OF SMALL
CHILDREN THERE.
WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN HEARING THIS
WEEK FROM THE PEOPLE THAT YOU
HAVE BEEN TALKING TO?
YEAH, UM, THERE'S A LOT OF
EMOTION THAT IS GOING ON.
THERE IS DESPAIR, ANGER,
FRUSTRATION.
THEN THERE'S ALSO SOME SILVER
LININGS AND WHAT'S GOING ON.
OBVIOUSLY WE SEE SOME SPACES
WHERE THERE HAVE BEEN, HOURS
STORES HAVE BEEN BURNT UP. THE
COMMUNITY HAS JUST REALLY
STEPPED UP IN A WAY THAT IS
REALLY AWESOME.
THEY ARE DOING THROUGH DRIVES.
THEY ARE GOING AS FAR AS
DELIVERING FOOD TO PEOPLE'S
HOUSES WHO MAY NOT HAVE
TRANSPORTATION.
THAT IS THE GOOD IN OUR
SOCIETY, THE GOOD IN OUR
COMMUNITY THAT WE WANT TO SEE
MORE OF.
OBVIOUSLY WE DON'T WANT TO
DISCOUNT THE DESPAIR AND ANGER
BUT WE WANT TO TRY TO HIGHLIGHT
SOME OF THE SILVER LININGS IN
THIS PROCESS THAT WE CAN USE TO
PROPEL US FORWARD AS A SOCIETY,
TO BE BETTER FOR OUR BLACK AND
BROWN STUDENTS AND COMMUNITY
MEMBERS.
MICHAEL, WHEN YOU THINK
ABOUT GOING FORWARD, TODAY OF
COURSE, THE FIRST MEMORIAL
SERVICE FOR GEORGE FLOYD, I
WILL CONFESS, I HAVE A LITTLE
BIT OF A FEAR THAT PEOPLE ARE
GOING TO WANT TO PUT A BOW ON
THINGS TODAY OVER THE NEXT
COUPLE OF DAYS AND THINK, ALL
RIGHT, WE HAVE HAD THE
PROTEST'S.
WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT THIS.
I DON'T KNOW THAT THIS IS
ENOUGH.
NO, IT IS DEFINITELY NOT
ENOUGH, RIGHT?
AS YOU KNOW, WE ARE GOING TO
PUSH FOR POLICIES AND LAWS TO
BE CHANGED.
THOSE THINGS ARE ALL FINE AND
WELL TO DO.
BUT WE ALSO HAVE TO BE NOTICING
THAT WE HAVE TO CHANGE THE
MINDSET.
ON A PREVIOUS SEGMENT THAT WE
DID AROUND RACIAL EQUITY, I
TALKED ABOUT, HOW DO WE BE IN
CONVERSATIONS WITH THOSE WHO
ARE CLOSE TO US, RIGHT?
IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE
CHALLENGE THE SYSTEM.
THE PROCESS OF LOYALTY TO
LEGACY.
THIS IS THE TIME WHERE WE
CANNOT BE LOYAL TO LEGACY
BECAUSE LEGACY HASN'T GOTTEN US
IN A POSITION WHERE BLACK FOLKS
ARE SEEN AS EQUALS TO EVERYONE
ELSE.
SO WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO
CHALLENGE THAT LOYALTY AND
LEGACY IN EVERY SINGLE MEETING,
EVERY SINGLE CONVERSATION THAT
WE ARE INVOLVED IN, SO WE CAN
GET BETTER OUTCOMES FOR STUDENTS
AND, LIKE I SAID BLACK
COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
WE HAVE TO BE MINDFUL, THIS IS
NOT JUST ABOUT POLICE
BRUTALITY.
THE GOVERNOR TALKED ABOUT
EDUCATION DISPARITIES, WEALTH
GAP, HOMEOWNERSHIP, HEALTH
DISPARITIES.
THERE'S ALL KINDS OF THINGS WE
HAVE TO CHANGE.
THAT TAKES ABILITY TO THINK
THROUGH THOSE THINGS.
AS SO MANY PEOPLE NOW ARE
CHALLENGING THEIR OWN FEELINGS
AND OWN EMOTIONS RIGHT NOW, IT
IS REALLY GOING TO TAKE A LOT
OF CONVERSATIONS ARE GOING TO
BE UNCOMFORTABLE IN THE DAYS
AND WEEKS AND MONTHS AND YEARS
AHEAD.
YEAH, FOR SURE.
AND WE HAVE TO BE WILLING TO
ACCEPT THAT AND UNDERSTAND THAT
THESE CONVERSATIONS ARE NOT
PERSONAL, RIGHT?
WE HAVE TO DEPERSONALIZE THESE
CONVERSATIONS AND SITUATE THEM
IN A SPACE WHERE IT IS REALLY
ABOUT, WHAT ARE WE DOING AS A
SOCIETY TO MAKE IT BETTER FOR
ALL PEOPLE?
THOSE CONVERSATIONS ARE REALLY
IMPORTANT.
THOSE ARE THE START OF IT, WE
REALLY HAVE TO SEE ACTION
ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE
CONVERSATIONS.
IT'S OKAY TO TALK ABOUT IT, BUT
NOW WHAT ARE GOING TO BE MY
ACTIONS ON A DAY-TO-DAY BASIS,
TO MAKE SURE WE ARE LIVING OUT
WHAT THOSE CONVERSATIONS ARE
INTENDING TO PUBLISH?
WE'VE BEEN TALKING FOR A
LONG TIME.
POINT IS WELL TAKEN, MICHAEL
WALKER, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR
BEING WITH US.
WE APPRECIATE IT.
THANK YOU, ONE POINT,
REMEMBER THAT THE KIDS ARE