Malcolm London: "High School Training Ground"

279,234 views ・ 2013-05-08

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Translator: Joseph Geni Reviewer: Morton Bast
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At 7:45 a.m., I open the doors to a building
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dedicated to building, yet only breaks me down.
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I march down hallways cleaned up after me every day
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by regular janitors,
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but I never have the decency to honor their names.
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Lockers left open like teenage boys' mouths
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when teenage girls wear clothes that covers
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their insecurities but exposes everything else.
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Masculinity mimicked by men who grew up with no fathers,
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camouflage worn by bullies who are dangerously armed
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but need hugs.
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Teachers paid less than what it costs them to be here.
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Oceans of adolescents come here to receive lessons
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but never learn to swim,
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part like the Red Sea when the bell rings.
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This is a training ground.
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My high school is Chicago,
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diverse and segregated on purpose.
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Social lines are barbed wire.
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Labels like "Regulars" and "Honors" resonate.
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I am an Honors but go home with Regular students
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who are soldiers in territory that owns them.
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This is a training ground to sort out the Regulars
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from the Honors, a reoccurring cycle
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built to recycle the trash of this system.
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Trained at a young age to capitalize,
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letters taught now that capitalism raises you
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but you have to step on someone else to get there.
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This is a training ground where one group
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is taught to lead and the other is made to follow.
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No wonder so many of my people spit bars,
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because the truth is hard to swallow.
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The need for degrees has left so many people frozen.
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Homework is stressful,
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but when you go home every day and your home is work,
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you don't want to pick up any assignments.
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Reading textbooks is stressful,
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but reading does not matter when you feel
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your story is already written,
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either dead or getting booked.
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Taking tests is stressful,
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but bubbling in a Scantron does not stop
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bullets from bursting.
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I hear education systems are failing,
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but I believe they're succeeding at what they're built to do --
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to train you, to keep you on track,
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to track down an American dream that has failed
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so many of us all.
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(Applause)
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