Learning in Black and White

Learning in Black and White. . Since 1867, California schools have been open to all. African American parents could generally find a good education for their children in Santa Monica, but there were teachers with White supremacist views who believed in the inferiority of Black people. Some used racist textbooks or tried to keep Black students from achieving in other ways. , Still, many students succeeded, such as Joseph W. Spalding. Born in the Belmar Triangle, he was the only African American student for an entire school year at Lincoln Middle School in the 1930s. At Santa Monica High School, he was a track star. Later he became a successful businessman with funeral homes in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, and Nevada. , There were also Black educators who worked for equal treatment in the schools. They helped make education an important tool in the African American fight against racism. , (Sidebar) , Santa Monica High School Graduates (right) , Only a few graduates of Santa Monica High School were African American in the 1940s, when the school at 602 Pico Boulevard was scattered among houses and commercial buildings. Its expansion in the 1950s displaced many Black families who lived nearby. , Joseph W. Spalding (near right) , Joseph W. Spalding grew up to own a funeral home at 1909 Colorado Avenue. It was the first Black-owned mortuary in the west Los Angeles County beach area. In 1963 Spalding rode a trick horse in the famous Tournament of Roses Parade. A photograph of the event was used to demonstrate Black accomplishments to schoolchildren. , Blanche A. Nelson Carter , Blanche A. Nelson Carter, pictured here in 1964, was a college graduate and educator. She was the first African American elected to the Santa Monica School Board. Her husband, the Reverend Welford P. Carter, was an educator, too – of hope and faith. , Photo captions/credits: , . Left: Santa Monica History Museum, Bulloch Collection , . Right: Santa Monica High School yearbook photos. (Clockwise from left) Joseph W. Spalding, Class of 1942; and Celestine Clisby, Waron Turner, Grace Spalding, and Ernestine LeSears, Class of 1946.