Education For Empowerment: Blacks’ Dreams Deferred?

By Munyonzwe Hamalengwa, PhD
PRIDE Guest Columnist

Education is one of the greatest equalizers in society.

For those who have not inherited family wealth, married-up or utilized their God-given talents to act, sing, paint or play sports, education is virtually the only guarantee of a secure job and future.

This has been emphasized, time and time again, by such luminaries as Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama, Lincoln Alexander and others.  These three gentlemen would probably have amounted to nothing without education.

It is thus very alarming when you read and see who appears in the 2015 Schulich Leaders that appeared in the Globe and Mail on September 5, 2015. There are no pictures of Black youth among the 50 students who got the Canada-wide Schulich Leader Scholarships to attend university under the program of “Creating the Next Generation of Technology Innovators”.

According to the program, every high school across Canada can select one graduating student as their Schulich Leader Nominee. From these Nominees, 50 Schulich Leader Scholarships valued at $80,000 and $60,000 are awarded by 20 Canadian Universities to study Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

The absence of Black students in this highly competitive and career foisting bonanza means that Blacks are less likely to be found in the future in these fields. These are the fields that guarantee employment and high mobility recycling and reproduction of families of future talent.

The students that appear in the pictures are those of Chinese, Indian and White parentage of both genders, evenly distributed. The more educated the parents are, the more generally their offspring will be educated.

And since education is generally the only equalizer in life, those who are left aside will not have the basis for equalizing the equation. This equation will keep reproducing itself into eternity. These kids will then mentor other kids who look like themselves.

Black kids will continue to be consigned to the dustbin of lower rank jobs and educational opportunities. The global economy is a knowledge based economy rooted in science, technology and mathematical sciences.

No one knows why Black kids do not appear on this list. Either they are not doing well in school, or are not applying, or the selection process is flawed. But there are systemic causes because the lack of Black faces on this list is not aberrational.

Every year in Canada, the newspapers publish the winners and pictures of the successful 40 under 40 years-old leaders as well as the most successful 50 leaders in Canada. There are no Blacks on any of these lists.

The Ontario Government also has an affirmative action involving women in the corporate sector. They are encouraging the private sector to hire women in positions of leadership. No one needs to spell out which women are targeted. Nor which women are targeted to stand up in elective positions. You will also figure out why there are no outcries from the mainstream when the corporate sector and the political establishment are encouraged to engage in affirmative action for women. Because those who are beneficiaries of these affirmative action programmes, just happen not to include Black Women.

What is to be done?

We need among other ideas, the creation of a Black Think Tank to articulate to the powers-that-be, the need to afford equal opportunities to Blacks, the same opportunities that are offered to others. Things never happen by themselves.

Writing about them is just the first step, after knowing about what is going on, which is itself a product of research and consciousness. The call-out has gone out.

Munyonzwe Hamalengwa, PhD (Law) is a former civil rights lawyer and author. His new book is entitled, Getting Away With Murder: International Criminal Law and South African Apartheid Criminals (2015).