50 years after busing in Boston, documentary digs into 1970s school segregation

"Busing Battleground," the latest documentary from American Experience, digs into school desegregation in Boston nearly 50 years after racial tensions boiled over in the city and the years-long fight that ensued. Directors Cyndee Readdean and Sharon Grimberg joined host Abdallah Fayyad to discuss.

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[BR-exxp]

What a terrible idea that was. They should always go to school in the district they live!

[SuzanPeters-pe]

My brother was an MP in the National Guard in Boston during the Busing.
He said it was chaos and really nothing to do but watch. Crazy.

[wustrkr]

They chose two poor communities. They could've used so many different communities but they chose the poorest. That's the real story.

[akafozzy]

I was sent to a black school in the 70s. There was 6 of us on the first day. 2 of us on the second week. I got beat up every day by black students and the black principal. I was 7 moved back to alaska with my dad.

[sistacentral]

White Flight destroyed Boston!! Forced Bussing is a Sin!!

My father worked his butt off to buy a house in Dorchester l, close to my school. I walked to school! It was great! He also had various sailboat at Savin Hill Yaght Club! He loved living near the ocean. He moved us out and it broke his heart.

[Myopinionmattersthemost]

In order to understand this racism, you have to understand how hard Irish and Italians fought to be considered white in America.

[pmclaughlin]

I always hated Common Ground. I never felt it told the story of what my family and friends actually experienced.
This "documentary" seems more of the same.
At the very last meeting on assignments, he looked at the coded map and asked what about his block. BPS said there were no houses on that block. He pointed out not only were there houses, there were 37 kids that lived on that block ...and they were not the only blank spots on the map.
30+ kids, a week before school, and the system had already lost us. Everyone stayed in BPS that year. The following year, everyone left the public school system except the family across the street (Newly divorced mom, 6 kids)