Page 50 - EdViewptsSpring2019-web

Between a Rock and a Safe Place

By Elford Rawls-Dill, Ph.D., Director of Curriculum & Instruction, Matawan-

Aberdeen Regional School District

A personal account of the beach. I know this to be true Jungle” was not mine. I learned then,
connecting cultural worlds because as a child, I timed my runs to that physical borders could be erected
with the intent to demarcate between
the fence on many hot summer days.
with the intent of building On such days, I would leave behind individuals, communities, cities, states,
the hectic and sometimes unforgiving countries, and even nations.
community. As a pre-teen and concrete environment affectionately The concrete “Jungle” was replete with
teenager, I was cool; at least I thought called “The Jungle”, for the opportunity obstacles and urban stressors that re-
I was. I grew up in New Jersey on the to peer through small gaps in brown quired careful attention and a Zen-like
shore filled with beautiful beaches wire fencing, to see how the “others” focus to navigate. Corners and streets
protected by a 10-foot fence and pay enjoyed the Atlantic Ocean during were crowded with black and brown
booths designed to keep kids like me the sultry months of July and August. bodies. There were dice games, crack
from entering and joining the summer Summer was not mine. The beach sales, basketball battles, drill team
fun. The housing project I grew up in was not mine. Even the brown fence competitions, double dutchers, and the
was 14 running minutes away from that protected the beach from “The

Educational Viewpoints -48- Spring 2019