Desegregation By Any Means Necessary

A gun-toting Black Power advocate was made principal of a Marin County, California school during efforts to desegregate 50 years ago. As they try again, we recount his radical legacy.

As the Sausalito Marin City School District continues to grapple with school desegregation, Reporter Marianne McCune brings us the sequel -- and the prequel -- to “Two Schools in Marin County”. She takes us back in time to witness how one of the first communities in the country to voluntarily desegregate took an unapologetically Black approach to better educate all students and the lessons that resonate as they push for change today.

Special thanks to David Duncan, a PhD student in history at UC Santa Cruz looking at school desegregation in the Bay Area, and to many other Sausalito and Marin City residents, past and present, who shared their memories for this story.

Companion listening for this episode:

“Two Schools in Marin County” (2/6/2020)

In the classrooms and town meetings of Marin, California we witness a community grappling with what desegregation and reparations might look like in the 21st century.

“Actor Daniel Kaluuya’s Road to Revolutionary” (3/4/21)

Kai talks to the “Judas and the Black Messiah” star about his award-winning portrayal of Fred Hampton and the legacy of the Black Panther Party.

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Notes from America airs live on Sundays at 6 p.m. ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts.