Support for desegregation in principle collapses when busing is enforced

Evidence

Statistics show that about 55 percent of white students who were assigned to schools historically composed of 90-100 percent minorities did not show up on the first day of classes. Of those reassigned to 80-89 percent minority schools 47 percent did not show up and 43 percent reassigned to 50-79 percent were absent comprising a total of 50 percent of reassigned white students not showing up to their assigned minority school (Rossell, 16). Although in principle most whites support desegregation, they adamantly opposed the practice of forced busing (Rossell, 13). — Marcy Crouch, Magnet Schools and Other Means of…, 22

Categorization

• CANDY: The absurdly precise detail that 43 percent “were absent” right after 47 percent “did not show up” is a quirky, quotable numbers moment.
• SEED: Angle: the ‘principle vs. practice’ gap as the recurring anatomy of American racial policy — a durable essay frame.