Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:... yet she is treated as the unwanted black kid in class. Sad on many levels.

For perspective, the person in the article is one of six elected class representatives in a cohort of 450.

If she was elected then other Asian students didn’t discriminate her, right.

Yes. A class of 450 students, majority of them Asian-American, voted for her so that she is one of 6 elected class representative.

No body cares she is Black, a female or muslim. No body has the time and no one devotes so much mental space to these things. Kids are basically not getting the normal American high school experience of socializing, dating etc as regular school students do. These kids are putting in the kind of hours in their education that most adults do not put in their jobs. Get a grip people!!

Anonymous wrote:It’s sad that she’s a Muslim immigrant from an Arab country (Sudan) yet she is expected to be the “spokesperson” for black tj students. Her life experiences have likely been very different than those of US-born African-Americans yet she is treated as the unwanted black kid in class. Sad on many levels.

Yeah, that's exactly what I was thinking about.
And the comment from the Asian girl about her (a Sudanese) belonging to a 'Black' (meaning, AA) community? Sometimes, I think certain groups should spend less time studying calculus and more time looking at the world around them. Ugh.

No TJ kid is socializing with each other after school. They are basically studying, doing projects, doing EC activities, interning or catching up on sleep.

We all know how it goes. A magnet student can only get 2 or the 3 - good grades, social life and sleep. Guess what 2 they choose?

Didi is in TJ because she has an intact family, and her family are recent immigrants from Africa. She is Black but not the same as African-Americans who were enslaved.

She is the "model Black" who does not have slavery in her family history. Except for being black in skin tone, neither her family, her parents education and her family's SES is like the African-Americans whose ancestors were enslaved, families torn apart, and who have faced generational poverty.

She will reap the full benefit of affirmative action put in place to help African-Americans who are truly downtrodden and different from her. She is actually as priviledged as the Whites and Asians who have come from MC intact families, with educated parents and who prioritize education. I bet she also is not a natural genius but rather a bright kid who studies hard - just like all the White and Asian-Americans.

Her fight for other URMs who are nothing like her is interesting and I am sure college admissions will think so too.

So, no. Her story of struggle and her life situation is not the same as the struggle of African-Americans who have not immigrated recently or 1 or 2 generations ago from Africa.

Can somebody explain to me what’s racist about asking about tribal clothes on the international day? Aren’t/weren’t there a lot of different tribes in Sudan? Isn’t her father on the Washington Post picture wearing some tribal clothes?

It’s also a true statement that being a black girl as a college applicant is a big benefit for her. Of course, she’ll be accepted not only because she is black, but if she has a 1500 SAT and 4.1 GPA, she’ll most likely trump an Asian boy with a 1600 SAT and 4.5 GPA. Colleges do discriminate based on race, and her race is not a victim in this case.

Anonymous wrote:Read this - another article she wrote https://www.tjtoday.org/29057/new-on-tjtoday/my-not-so-black-and-white-look-at-diversity-at-jefferson/

The problem starts at AAP - she was the only black child selected to AAP in her entire grade. If children don't have access to resources and tools in elementary and middle school, how are they expected to overcome all that and succeed in high school? Changing things at TJ without first reforming AAP will be like trying to balance a skyscraper on a wooden pole.

It’s so distressing to see this wave of opposition to change at TJ from cut-throat TJ parents and students repackaged as false empathy. You can embrace the long overdue revisions to TJ admissions or watch your private little academy for prepped Asian and white kids get swept away entirely.

The lottery makes sense at TJ. Fair across the board.

AAP needs to be reformed in a similar manner. Too many parents prepping and appealing and WISC-ing in kids who don’t deserve it.

Systemic racism has thrived for far too long under promises of meaningless reform. Transformative change is needed.

Immediately.

Read this - another article she wrote https://www.tjtoday.org/29057/new-on-tjtoday/my-not-so-black-and-white-look-at-diversity-at-jefferson/

The problem starts at AAP - she was the only black child selected to AAP in her entire grade. If children don't have access to resources and tools in elementary and middle school, how are they expected to overcome all that and succeed in high school? Changing things at TJ without first reforming AAP will be like trying to balance a skyscraper on a wooden pole.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am against the lottery, but Didi's story at TJ is important to read for all sides.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2020/10/19/thomas-jefferson-high-school-diversity/

How Asian American friends warned her not to come to their houses after school, because their parents distrust Black people.

That doesn't surprise me at all about Asians.

I am not sure about this after school thing. My kids returned home around 5 pm every day from TJ, some take more time than us. After freshening up, they immediately start on the home work, assignments, preparing for tests ... not a single day they had time to go to anyone’s home or wanted to go to.

If that is supposed to make people somehow feel better about the atmosphere at TJ. it’s an epic fail.

It is your choice, if you don’t want this atmosphere don’t go for it.
TJ kids are from different parts of the Fairfax county and from other counties, how many TJ kids can you find in your neighborhood, I wonder how many meet after school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am against the lottery, but Didi's story at TJ is important to read for all sides.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2020/10/19/thomas-jefferson-high-school-diversity/

How Asian American friends warned her not to come to their houses after school, because their parents distrust Black people.

That doesn't surprise me at all about Asians.

I am not sure about this after school thing. My kids returned home around 5 pm every day from TJ, some take more time than us. After freshening up, they immediately start on the home work, assignments, preparing for tests ... not a single day they had time to go to anyone’s home or wanted to go to.

If that is supposed to make people somehow feel better about the atmosphere at TJ. it’s an epic fail.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am against the lottery, but Didi's story at TJ is important to read for all sides.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2020/10/19/thomas-jefferson-high-school-diversity/

How Asian American friends warned her not to come to their houses after school, because their parents distrust Black people.

That doesn't surprise me at all about Asians.

I am not sure about this after school thing. My kids returned home around 5 pm every day from TJ, some take more time than us. After freshening up, they immediately start on the home work, assignments, preparing for tests ... not a single day they had time to go to anyone’s home or wanted to go to.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:... yet she is treated as the unwanted black kid in class. Sad on many levels.

For perspective, the person in the article is one of six elected class representatives in a cohort of 450.

If she was elected the other Asian students didn’t discriminate her, right.

She was elected ? That changes things quite a bit

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:... yet she is treated as the unwanted black kid in class. Sad on many levels.

For perspective, the person in the article is one of six elected class representatives in a cohort of 450.

If she was elected the other Asian students didn’t discriminate her, right.

Anonymous wrote:... yet she is treated as the unwanted black kid in class. Sad on many levels.

For perspective, the person in the article is one of six elected class representatives in a cohort of 450.

Anonymous wrote:I am against the lottery, but Didi's story at TJ is important to read for all sides.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2020/10/19/thomas-jefferson-high-school-diversity/

How Asian American friends warned her not to come to their houses after school, because their parents distrust Black people.

That doesn't surprise me at all about Asians.