Amazing Grace- Jonathan Kozol- Quotes
Amazing Grace by Jonathan Kozol
"The Lives of children and conscience of a nation"
Quotes
There are many thought-provoking and eye opening quotes that Kozol brings up in this article, but several really stood out to me.
There are many thought-provoking and eye opening quotes that Kozol brings up in this article, but several really stood out to me.
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"At the elementary school that serves the neighborhood across the avenue, only seven of the 800 children do not qualify for free school lunches. "Five of those seven" says the principal "get free or reduced-price lunches because the are classified as only 'poor' and not 'destitute'."
I personally feel that it is crazy to think that after seeing and hearing about the conditions that these kids are living in and dealing with everyday, that they do not even qualify for free or reduced lunch. I feel that free lunch should be provided at most schools especially ones in these type of areas. I have experienced middle school children when I was working in the Woonsocket, RI school district, which is nothing like these schools in the south Bronx, but most of these kids did not qualify for free lunch and could not afford to buy lunch and would not even eat lunch during lunch time. I bought several students lunch on several occasions because I felt so bad. And the saddest part is that the lunches in the cafeteria were pretty disgusting, which means it probably doesn't cost much to make in the first place, which is why they should provide these lunches for free. How are kids supposed to learn and concentrate when they are starving?
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"Some of these houses are freezing in the winter." "You just cover up.... and hope you wake up in the morning"
I can not imagine doing this every night ALL WINTER LONG!
I can only compare it to a cold night camping when you didn't bring enough clothes and blankets and you are so cold you crawl inside the blankets you do have, head and everything and shiver until you finally fall asleep and wake up in the morning and its super hot. I know this is no where near anything like this but its the only experience I have that is similar. Kozol says that the city does distribute sleeping bags and emergency blankets and stuff like that but that's not all the time and I doubt everyone gets them.
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"St. Ann's Church, on St. Ann's Avenue, is three blocks
from the subway station, The children who come to this
small Episcopal church for food and comfort and to play,
and the mothers and fathers who come here for prayer, 'Ire
said to be the poorest people in New York.
"More than 95 percent are poor," the pastor says-"the poorest of the
poor, poor by any standard I can think of."
This quote just shows several different things all in one. The fact that 95 percent of the people who attend St. Ann's Church are poor and are said to be the poorest people in New York.
"The poorest of the poor"
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Question to think about:
Is this getting any better? Even though there are shelters and places for families to go to pray, stay warm,eat and stay safe from violence, it seems like things aren't really better. Children are still living in horrible conditions and experiencing violence first hand everyday.
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I found this article on this site and feel that it gives some more background and statistics of the South Bronx and Mott Haven. https://www.amny.com/south-bronx-central-brooklyn-hardest-spots-for-kids-growing-up-1.7057102
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I also found this article about kids at The Mott Haven Academy which was created by The New York Foundling. It is the first charter school of its kind in the nation with two-thirds of its student body consisting of children actively in the child welfare system.
They performed a musical called "Unstoppable" which follows the lives of six creative and street smart urban kids as they navigate their way through foster care, shelters, deportation and the unforgiving NYC streets.
They performed a musical called "Unstoppable" which follows the lives of six creative and street smart urban kids as they navigate their way through foster care, shelters, deportation and the unforgiving NYC streets.
* Even though this article isn't really about children growing up in foster care, it is still probably the reality of a good amount of children growing up in NYC.*
You brought up some really good points. I also wrote about this article and I wondered the same thing. Is it getting better? Your right, children that are cold and hungry can not possibly be ready to learn. Head Start is a great program for children before they are school age that provides care and meals. I know that you need to qualify for this program. I wonder what the income requirements are? Another problem is how to reach out to the parents that are sick and under stress and get them to utilize these programs. It seems like they are stuck in a vicious cycle.
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