Revamping education in the community, not the classroom

The Chicago Reporter talked to Jackson about his approach to education.

How did you get involved in education?

From a very early age. I grew up in the city of Chicago and the education in the city failed me. I attended 11 different Chicago Public Schools. And after graduating from a Chicago public school, I was only in college for three months before I flunked out.

Once you’ve failed, you get that “F” on your report card; it does something to you. It breaks you down. I thought “Damn, I’m pretty dumb.” Then I thought maybe it’s something else. Maybe it’s them and not me. If it’s them, what I have to do is self-educate. That’s when I started taking responsibility for my education.

Nobody had taken responsibility before then — not me, my parents, the schools — they simply passed me through. When I grew up, I knew I couldn’t let the same thing happen to other young black men. Just because the system had failed me, didn’t mean it should keep happening.

What is the central mission of the Black Star Project?

It’s an education mission, but not in the classical sense. The classical sense failed me, and most of the Black Star Project is a response to what was missing from my life as a child. While the school system has remained the same, I thought that if I can put supports in and open up the minds of young people, and encourage them to learn, then they don’t really need schools in that way.

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