And Still We Rise (Post #2 pgs.134-268)

Corwin continues to detail the obstacles faced by the gifted students at South Centrals Crenshaw High in pages 134-268 of his book, but he also describes the teachers and administrators who are doing the best that they can to help these students. With quotes and dialogues between the faculty members at Crenshaw and students, Corwin is able to give insight on the gifted program coordinator, Scott Braxton. Corwin explains how Braxton has developed many close relationships with the troubled students who have still managed to do exceedingly well in school. Braxton faces so many struggles as he attempts to keep these students in school, and encourage them to hold on for just nine more months. In a dialogue between a teacher and Braxton, Corwin shows how some people feel Braxton should stop trying to help these students: "That girl's got to learn the consequences of getting pregnant. You can't do everything for her," "I know, I know [Braxton says] But she's gotta finish high school." Further in the book, Corwin pulls more from the autobiographies of students; he writes a bout a socially talented and gifted student named LaTisha who had to confront a history of being a sexually assaulted by er step father, after she found connections between her and a character in Portrait of the Artist. In one quote from LaTisha she says, "Like I'm not crazy, not a couch case." This quote shows how many of the students whose lives are chronicled must think and even feel. These students have experienced so many trials and tribulations, many of them not even the products of their own doings, but they still feel that they are to blame or they are "crazy". While telling the stories of the teachers who help these students such as Ms. Little and Mrs. Moultrie, who have an overlying conflict with each other, Corwin describes the environment in which these students live. With facts and more than vivid imagery Corwin chronicles how many black people migrated to Los Angeles in the years following WWII, and how South Central was the "cultural hub" for many African Americans. He also describes how with immigrations and riots the area became increasingly filled with more destitute blacks and filled with more government controlled housing, and less businesses were able to thrive. In the closing chapters of this section, Corwin tells of how the student who was abused by her mother, Olivia, was sentenced to some jail time and may or may not be able to finish school, and how a pregnant gifted student, Toya, is able to return to school for her second semester.

Discussion Questions:
Clarification: Is Olivia able to go to the Kirby Center and finish school or will she be sent to a camp?
Application: Corwin describes the area of South Central, along with its history. Has the area changed since the writing of this book?