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An atrocious city public school where controversial New York Times scribe Nikole Hannah-Jones sent her daughter as a “sacrifice’’ was so dangerous it was known as “Little Riker’s Island,’’ according to parents.
Ridiculously lagging PS 307 in Brooklyn was rife with severe academic challenges that were only exacerbated by rampant safety concerns involving bullying and teacher assaults, charged a change.org petition in 2023.
“The school’s safety has deteriorated to a point where PS307 is known as ‘Little Rikers Island,’” said the furious online petition demanding the resignations of the then-principal and her assistant principal — while referring to the city jail so notoriously dangerous that it is being closed down.
“Bullying rates have surged, with students assaulting teachers during recess without consequences. Students are afraid to attend school due to the fear of physical harm. The Principal refuses to hire adequate staff to safeguard students,’’ claimed the petition, which garnered 111 signatures out of the 200 it was seeking.
“We, the concerned parents and community members of District 13, write this petition to urgently address the dire situation at Daniel Hale Williams P. S. 307 School.”
Hannah-Jones, 50, the privileged, infamous creator of the 1619 Project, detailed in a bizarre new essay that she sent her only child, Najya, to PS 370 and a failing Brooklyn middle school, starting in 2015, to try to change what she characterized as systemic racism — even while admitting she knew the schools had horrible academics and she could afford to send her kid elsewhere.
The scribe — whose 1619 Project series of books, podcasts and other media promote the idea that slavery was the most important part of US history — framed her ill-fated move as superbly altruistic.
The mom had meanwhile herself enjoyed a top-notch education at the University of Notre Dame and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill — but said she was willing to “sacrifice’’ Najya’s future for the greater good.
“We thought by sending Najya to a mostly low-income and Black school, we could help improve it for all the children there,’’ Hannah-Jones wrote.
“We believed strongly that if families like ours went into schools like this one, it would challenge other families with similar values to do the same.”
Her daughter was furious because she said it put her so far behind when it came time for high school, the writer publicly acknowledged.
“So you had money to send me to one of the best schools, and you chose not to?” the girl screamed at her mom at one point, according to the essay.
“Because other kids are disadvantaged, you didn’t want to put me in a great school?”
English (US)