this attitude and way of thinking will just reiterate mediocrity instead of introducing excellency. In chapters four and five, Kozol explains that part of the reason this ongoing cycle has not been broken is the constant battle over state and local control. There are many issues in the public education system that are handled, or perhaps in some cases mishandled (according to Kozol), by the law. One of these issues includes that of state vs. local control. Kozol discusses, in detail, a class-action lawsuit where the court ruled in favor of the parents, saying that all education matters should be handled by the state. Another issue addressed by Kozol is his concern that after certain court cases and rulings Plessy vs. Ferguon (1876), Brown vs. Board of Education (1954), and, most recently, Miliken vs. Bradley (1975) were worse off than over 100 years ago. The Plessy case introduced the notion of separate but equal, which segregated black and white children, but gave the impression that the opportunities and education were still equal although the children were segregated. The Brown case was a reversal of the Plessy case, stopping segregation in our schools, making it so black and white children went to school together. Yet, according to Kozol, we are now living in a separate and unequal society, especially in our school systems. Kozol attempts to anger the reader and get the reader to think about how free and equal America really is. Kozol does an outstanding job in making the reader angry and feeling sympathetic to these children. Although he sometimes gets too repetitive, he is trying to make the reader understand how important equal opportunities in education are. He also talks too much about less important issues. For example, he focuses too much on the deficiency of football uniforms and locker rooms, and describes the lack of computers and the like. What is important is that these children learnsports and computers are ...
