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Reviews
Punished for Dreaming: How School Reform Harms Black Children and How We Heal by Bettina L. Love
amandakitz's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
This book is clearly the product of a deep practice of hope that looks to what is possible without turning away from the truth of suffering and this book shows both with the same depth of research, skill, and heart.
Analyzing the history of educational policy in the U.S. from Brown vs. Board of Education until today, Love dissects the policies and their creators to show the underbelly, all those ways in which white supremacy and capitalism work together to devastate Black youth for white profit. She uses personal interviews to have a grounded conversation about the data and its real life impacts. Her incisive analysis and proposed reparations are all based in an incredible amount of research. Not only is the information crucial, the execution is incredibly well done.
As an educator, I would put this book on the list of required reading right alongside Michelle Alexander's The New Jim Crow for the depth of scholarship and incisive analysis. I can't recommend it enough.
Analyzing the history of educational policy in the U.S. from Brown vs. Board of Education until today, Love dissects the policies and their creators to show the underbelly, all those ways in which white supremacy and capitalism work together to devastate Black youth for white profit. She uses personal interviews to have a grounded conversation about the data and its real life impacts. Her incisive analysis and proposed reparations are all based in an incredible amount of research. Not only is the information crucial, the execution is incredibly well done.
As an educator, I would put this book on the list of required reading right alongside Michelle Alexander's The New Jim Crow for the depth of scholarship and incisive analysis. I can't recommend it enough.
e_tully4's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
4.25
It was very well researched and it made me mad, but I feel like it was missing something? I think it was probably just different than her last book, so that could be it as well.
juanitamfm's review
challenging
emotional
informative
medium-paced
5.0
This book is very informative about all the ways racism causes harm in education for black children. It address issues like corporations using schools to make money, racist reforms and the carceral system and their impact on students. It also has solutions and positivity. It’s written in a very readable way. She does an excellent job tying in personal stories with the facts to make it easier to take in.
stevia333k's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Genocide, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, Cultural appropriation, Child death, Misogyny, Murder, Child abuse, Gun violence, Torture, Slavery, and Racism
allisonbuzard's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
“Unflinching” is an apt description of Love’s work. This book was part history, part journalism, part education, and part memoir. For anyone who has ever been part of the education system in the U.S. or who has a vote or a voice currently in the U.S. education system (that’s nearly all of us) this is a must read.
Love hold nothing back: Not truth, not political party loyalty, not fear of naming names, not anger at injustice… and yet, she also refuses to hold back on love, repair, and humanity in the process. I appreciate that Love tells a comprehensive history, signals the current state, and also spends as much care dreaming about a hopeful future. Absolutely recommend!
Love hold nothing back: Not truth, not political party loyalty, not fear of naming names, not anger at injustice… and yet, she also refuses to hold back on love, repair, and humanity in the process. I appreciate that Love tells a comprehensive history, signals the current state, and also spends as much care dreaming about a hopeful future. Absolutely recommend!