HEMPSTEAD, NY. “Fantastic!” “Incredible!” “Exceptional!” “Well done!” “Powerful.” All of these words predictably pepper the reviews of major Hollywood blockbusters. Not so predictably, they were also used by individuals who viewed ERASE Racism’s new documentary, A TALE OF TWO SCHOOLS: Race & Education on Long Island, which premiered at Hofstra University on May 6th. The film follows David and Owen, two very similar African American high school seniors, as well as Owen’s white friend Dave, who attend two very different Long Island public high schools. The premiere, attended by nearly 300 people, marks the launch of ERASE Racism’s new campaign to change the public education system here on Long Island and is the first in what will be a series of forums on the issue.

Encouragingly for ERASE Racism, based on participant evaluations, the forum was an incredibly educational experience. While a large majority of the evaluation respondents indicated that they already knew “something” or “a lot” about the subject matter, a majority also indicated that they learned “something” or “a lot” from attending the event. As one put it, “The video was a powerful agent for illustrating so vividly the difference in the ed[ucation] experiences of L[ong] I[sland] public school students…” Another respondent indicated that the event was “very educational/eye opening.” A very common refrain was that the film was a “graphic,” “powerful,” “moving,” “personalized” depiction of the problem of public school education on Long Island. More than just a film screening, the premiere event also featured a PowerPoint presentation before the film that “formed a framework for what followed” as well as a panel discussion after the film that “addressed many of the issues raised by the film.”

The major thrust of the film and the event was to showcase the differences between school districts on Long Island. As one reviewer put it, “The film and presentation [were] pretty eye-opening to the disparity in resources and equality between different districts.” The discussion also focused on the way public schools on Long Island are funded, causing one participated to say “the way we fund schools makes no sense, both from the point of view of the schools and because of the tax burden on property owners.” Remarked one reviewer on the PowerPoint presentation, “I was able to see the diversity and disparity between the district[s]…visuals always help emphasize words.” Finally, the film can best be summarized by the words of one respondent, who said, “The film was exceptional. It gave everyone the opportunity to get a closer perspective of how students are affected by segregation.”

While a few people indicated that ERASE Racism should “keep up the good work of getting the word out,” by far, the more popular sentiment was that it was time to act. As one person so bluntly phrased it, “Interesting, but enough talk: It’s time to act!” This sentiment echoes the ultimate goal of ERASE Racism; as previously mentioned, the premiere marked the first in a series of forums. The purpose of these forums is to stimulate discussion that develops, and advocates for the implementation of, a set of policy recommendations that will address racial inequities, encourage racial integration, and promote excellence in public school education for all students across Long Island.

ERASE Racism would like to thank the co-sponsors for this event: the Hofstra University School of Education, Health, and Human Services, the Hofstra University Department of Sociology, and the National Center for Suburban Studies at Hofstra University, as well as the event’s panelists: Dr. Constance Clark-Sneed, Dr. Mark Silver, and New York State Board of Regents member Roger Tilles. A TALE OF TWO SCHOOLS was filmed, directed, and produced for ERASE Racism by David Van Taylor of Lumiere Productions with financial support from Amy and Sue Hagedorn.

Please check ERASE Racism’s website over the coming weeks (www.eraseracismny.org) for information about future events. If you would like to join the more than 20 people who have already expressed interest in getting involved with the education campaign, please email info@eraseracismny.org.

See our Video Page for the trailer for A Tale of Two Schools