Overall, the project provides an interactive way to reflect on school desegregation and efforts to
improve school quality in Winston-Salem, NC. Our project’s story is not conclusive. It is a view along a
historical path of continued efforts to deny and impede equality and navigates to initiatives leading to
new ideas and plans to improve communities and education.
TIMELINE:
The timeline follows pathways of litigation, Negro Schools and White Schools, first “Negro” enrollments,
and the struggle toward integration, inclusive of current students' perspectives. By exploring a linear context of inequity, we also provide an opportunity to learn about the current community and school leaders at the forefront of reviewing structural discrepancies and advocating for change.
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COMMUNITY VOICES:
Community Voices travels to the lived experience through personal interviews to provide insight into the
impact of desegregation methods on the African American community—touching upon topics such as
the emotional toll of separateness, wealth disparities, and school district borders.
REFLECTIONS:
The project closes by opening the doors to allow viewer input and blog about their experiences in the
journey from desegregation to integration. We hope the project sparks further examination of Winston-
Salem/Forsyth County and how communities can continue to come together to promote more
extraordinary efforts toward excellence and equity for all Winston-Salem students.
CHOOSE YOUR JOURNEY
“Many people may rightly say, “I had nothing to do with how this all started. I have nothing to do with the sins of the past. My ancestors never attacked indigenous people, never owned slaves.” And, yes. Not one of us was here when this house was built. Our immediate ancestors may have had nothing to do with it, but here we are, the current occupants of a property with stress cracks and bowed walls and fissures built into the foundation. We are the heirs to whatever is right or wrong with it. We did not erect the uneven pillars or joists, but they are ours to deal with now.”
― Isabel Wilkerson, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents