And so now, the doors at
our reunion burst open as a color guard marched in, followed by the current
Student Government leaders who came to say hello to us old-timers.
Oh, my god, they were
w-o-m-e-n, Latina foxes, mostly Puerto Rican, beautiful and brassy in tight
outfits and high heels. Wow. Some of the guys reverted to form and whistled,
quickly laughing at themselves for doing so.
Yes, Clinton had changed, as had we. And yet these kids were part of our tradition, up from the streets city kids. The ethnic mix was different now, but their youth and exuberance remained as energized as ours had ever been.
I even met one of the
editors of the newly revived Clinton News . The baton had been passed."
Update: The school is still vital in the North Bronx. The Department of Education recently threatened to close it but now wants to limit the size of the student body and add two new schools to what is to be called "The DeWitt Clinton Campus."
The students, teachers and alums all oppose the move and blame the City for dumping kids with educational deficits in the School and then slashing its budget. A battle has been joined at Clinton as it is in cities across America where public schools are being closed and private interests want to take over. This is not a new battle--but, it is one worth fighting!
News Dissector Danny Schechter went on from The Clinton News to editing a magazine at college and then plunged into a career in print, radio and TV. He tells that story in a new book, Dissecting The News and Lighting The Fuse. He is a blogger (NewsDissector.net) who also edits Mediachannel.org.
