And yet that has not been my experience. I don't see people getting up and saying this is irrelevant or this is a waste of time because I explain that when their children leave this school, they will go on to colleges, universities, and work places that are very concerned about diversity. For example, here at Brown University, the first-year class will be maybe 30 to 35 percent students of color. We tell parents that in the year 2000 only 36 percent of the workforce will be white males, and parents begin to consider how youngsters from homogenous suburban schools are going to fit in, be successful. Much has been accomplished, but much more needs to be done.
Some issues remain very difficult to address.
Teachers will say, 'I walk down the hallways and hear kids calling each other queer, 'fag,' and other homophobic terms. Homophobia is rampant. At the same time, teachers may be uncomfortable dealing with this issue. In 1997, if students say something anti-Semitic in class or something racist, my sense is teachers will call the students on it, although I can tell you of instances where they have not. However, if a student says something homophobic, the teacher may very well look the other way.