Is Westport a racist town?
Are we antisemitic?
Listening to the local and national news — and reading some comments on this blog — the answer seems to be “yes.”
The other day, a Black parent tearfully told the Board of Education that her 2 daughters were victims of racial slurs and harassment, at Bedford Middle and Staples High Schools.
Dr. Carol Felder (right) and her husband Richard Anderson, speaking at a recent Board of Education meeting.
Barely 2 months earlier, a Jewish parent wrote in Newsweek that his middle school son was taunted so badly, he enrolled in a private school.
Both times, some “06880” commenters wondered what our schools are doing to punish the perpetrators of hate speech, and stop it from happening in the first place. (Privacy laws prevent administrators from discussing specific disciplinary measures, like suspensions and expulsions.)
Others noted that children’s attitudes are shaped first in the home. “You’ve got to be carefully taught” to hate, they wrote, echoing lines from “South Pacific.”
Deniers and apologists shared space in the Comments section. Emotions ran the gamut: rage, sadness, frustration — sometimes all in the same response.
But issues of racism and antisemitism are not new. When it comes to acceptance, Westport has a checkered past.
In the 1940s, a Black community thrived at 22 1/2 (now 28) Main Street. It included residents, a grocer, barber shop and church.
In December 1949, members asked the Representative Town Meeting to be considered for new affordable housing planned for Hales Road.
They were rebuffed. A local newspaper predicted “great loss of life” if a fire threatened the “slum housing” on Main Street.
Eight days later, 22 1/2 Main Street burned to the ground. Arson was suspected — but there was no investigation.
Burned out of Westport, the residents moved elsewhere. Soon, they were forgotten.
A 2018 exhibit at the Westport Museum of History & Culture included photos and text about 22 1/2 Main Street.
Two decades later, in the aftermath of Martin Luther King’s murder, Westport’s interfaith clergy joined residents and Staples students to create an Intercommunity Camp.
Youngsters came from Bridgeport and Norwalk to Westport and Weston, for summer fun.
Not all Westporters were pleased. They opposed “busing” in kids from those town — and were even angrier when Project Concern (a program to bring Bridgeport students here) was proposed for the school year.
That controversy led to a recall effort against Board of Ed chair Joan Schine, who promoted the idea. The recall campaign — with antisemitic overtones — eventually failed.
For more than a decade, Project Concern thrived. Some of the friendships made in schools half a century ago continue today.
Walt Melillo teaching a Project Concern student, at Burr Farms School.
A successor of sorts is A Better Chance of Westport. For 2 decades, through a national program, academically gifted and highly motivated young men of color live together in Westport. Supported by host families, drivers and many others — including Black men who act as mentors — they give back as much to our town as they get from it.
For even longer, Westport has participated in Open Choice. The lottery program brings a few Bridgeport students here, beginning in elementary school. Participants have long described a variety of issues, including feeling “different” and ostracized, and — though there is a “late bus” — being unable to participate in after-school activities because of transportation difficulties.
Westport’s checkered past is religious as well as racial.
Stories of homeowners not selling to Jews — and country clubs excluding them — are real.
But after World War II, Westport opened up. The town was known as “not Darien or New Canaan.”
Temple Israel was the first synagogue. Today there are 4. Non-Jewish 13-year-olds go to so many bar mitzvahs, they joke that they know all the prayers.
Yet in late December Colony Road was hit by brazen thefts of lawn signs with the Israel flag, supporting that nation after the terrorist attack by Hamas.
This person put an Israel flag lawn sign in the trash barrel, and wheeled it away.
There are plenty of Jewish families in Westport today.
There are far fewer Black families — though certainly more than when I was at Staples, in the 1970s.
“Hate Has No Home Here” signs — ubiquitous a few years ago — still stand on lawns throughout town.
There is also TEAM Westport (the town’s official multicultural committee), and Westport 10 (a networking and social group for Black men and their families).
Both are important. But neither they — nor any program, or all 4 synagogues, or any other one “thing” — will remove the glare of the media spotlight from our town, or ease the perception that this is a racist, antisemitic place.
The truth is, we are a socioeconomically segregated, relatively homogenous suburb, in a state that, while socioeconomically segregated, mirrors the ethnic diversity of America.
We still have work to do.
We — Westporters of all ages — still must be taught not to hate.
But not “carefully” taught.
Instead: Forcefully. Consistently. And ceaselessly.
Nope‼️ Westport isn’t a racist town. Might have more work to do, but definitely not racist or anti Semetic. Far from it 🙏
I love it, but how? It is the same old problem: children voice what they hear at home.
Does anyone remember “The Turtle”, an anti-racist newspaper which published only twice in support of Project Concern and Board of Education chair Joan Schine, which was conceived, written and edited by Tracy Sugarman, Mary-Lou Weisman (my wife), Paul Goode and others. It took its name from the line, “Behold the turtle! He maketh progress by sticking his neck out”.
I’m not from the USA & unfortunately we have experienced discrimination too. The town still has work to do.
Racism in the home begets racism in the world. Children grow up to be racists because they are taught to be racist. It starts in the home, and that’s where it can be stopped. In our home, we self-govern against any hint of intolerance. We’re not perfect but we strive to be better.
Thank you for continuing to bring this important subject to the forefront. I grew up in Westport and have lived in other areas of the country including Florida, with a continual yearning to return home to Westport. I finally had the opportunity to move home a few years ago and hoped to leave the horrific attitudes behind.
Although I am angry and saddened by what is occurring here I will point out the stark differences.
Westporters are not afraid of ANYTHING. They boldly and unapologetically verbalize the way they feel. There is NO hiding names… it is all out in the open. This is hugely refreshing, highly unique and a stark contrast to the other areas i have resided. We are not afraid of conflict to bring about change. This could not be more opposite from what fought against and witnessed in other areas.
I am confident that there are enough tough, outspoken Westporters to bring about this needed change in our community. I am grateful for each voice that demands we do better and denounces HATE in all forms. This is what sets Westport apart and why our goals will be achieved and prevail. HATE WILL HAVE NO HOME HERE. Go TEAM WESTPORT
Dan- one of your most important columns, beautifully written. The rising lack of empathy for others and lack of kindness as seen in these incidents and even as seen in drivers who blow through stop signs and red lights around town, or the behavior of some folks on the sidelines at sports events, or in the discourse at Town meetings- is part of this troubling moment we find ourselves in.
I think the spotlight on Westport as a racist and antiemetic town and now protests on town is just going to help the underlying issues. We did not have a lot of black families in Westport when I grew up, but many years later I am raising kids that also go to SHS and the diversity here has increased 10 fold (is this a primarily black community – no, but there are many more black, brown people
And many more people from Europe and Asia that have relocated here.
Yes bullying continues I have heard stories over the years from friends of mine)and yes kids can be mean (who has not experienced that) , and yes kids need to be taught how to be better, but for this issue in our small town to make national news and regular CT news is very frustrating to me. Our kids are dealing with constant barrage of media attention and fear of violence in schools and protests bring up more fear. I believe there needs to be more open discussions at schools, town halls, churches etc… also kids are dealing with increased anxiety and depression (I think from so much media exposure 24/7) and suicide rates are the highest ever in teenagers (we need to be addressing this issue). Now people on the media are saying kids should be expelled and their lives ruined because of their insensitivity and rudeness and I think there is a different way to address this – not through media attention and protests outside the HS, making Westporters look like we are racist. I don’t think the
Majority would feel that way. Do we have work to do, yes, but so does the whole nation.
I’m new to town and I don’t have enough information to comment on the facts of this particular matter. I think, however, that calling someone with a different viewpoint an apologist or denier is name calling. I guess we do have work to do.
06880 is the last place left in Westport where people actually say what they mean. The handwriting is on the wall of the Parker Harding tunnel. So nice to wake up to. Racist or not: YOU’RE GONNA GET WHAT’S COMING TO YOU!!!
Westporters of all ages are going to learn the joys of being violently taught. “Carefully taught” is SO 1950’s and such hard work for surrogate parents eager to catch up with the Joneshrams. “Forcefully. Consistently. And ceaselessly.” (Brave New) World without end. Amen.
Batten down the hatches Westport. Your complacent world is about to get rocked. Cockenoe Island is the new Fort Sumter.
Verso is the new Nuremberg rally. Build (Long Lots) Back Better.
May I suggest you can address incidents of racism and bad behavior without the knee-jerk reaction of trashing an entire town. I’ve lived in multiple locations in the northeast, including the last 25 years in Westport and have found more acceptance and less racism here in Westport than anywhere else. I live in a diverse neighborhood in the community (yes, they do exist) and have never experienced any issues or have my neighbors expressed any problems specifically tied to race. That said, although as parents we have always taught tolerance of all people to our children they have experienced this nonsense in the Westport schools, especially at Staples. Granted much less than I experienced in high school in a very different generation but still shocking to me. The most offensive examples tied to the athletic programs at Staples, where this type of behavior was not only tolerated but dismissed as “locker room talk” or “boys will be boys”, or “trash talk”. So anyone solely blaming parents for this behavior is very much mistaken. As with drinking, drugs and bad behavior, I’ve experienced a way too permissive attitude at Staples. Where a zero tolerance policy should be the norm with heavy penalties, the typical is mostly hand slaps and multiple warnings so as not to garner wealthy parents ire or affect little Bill’s chances at that ivy league school. So the behavior proliferates. We experienced an individual with multiple prior offenses actually caught dealing drugs in Staples. He was publicly expelled but then quietly allowed to return two weeks later. Then people wring their hands as to why these issues continue to be a problem. Three chances: detention / suspension / expulsion, period. You’ll see how quickly these incidents are reduced substantially. Until the schools get serious no amount of parenting will counteract the negative peer pressure encouraged in our school population. Until then, please focus on the problem directly but stop trashing the majority of an entire town of good, caring people who live and teach the real ideals of American society every day.
exactly – absolutely agree with everything you said here.
Let’s recall these 1949 lyrics from “South Pacific” written by Rodgers and Hammerstein:
*”You’ve got to be taught to hate and fear,
You’ve got to be taught from year to year,
It’s got to be drummed in your dear little ear—
You’ve got to be carefully taught!
You’ve got to be taught to be afraid
Of people whose eyes are oddly made,
And people whose skin is a different shade—
You’ve got to be carefully taught.”
Philip I agree Westport is one of the better places. The northeast is one of the better places in the nation regarding this subject. I agree the vast majority is not the issue . However, I think the bigger concern as of late is “ the real ideals of American society “…. We are divided and need to be vigilant in our communities to stop Hate.
Well said Dan. I’m 75 and I have spoken out and stood up against racism and unjust wars since my college days in Memphis. I keep hoping things will change but real change has not happened. I applaud you continuing the good fight.
Why oh WHY are racism and antisemitism spoken of as if they are separate and unequal categories of hate relative to one another?
Great commentary however, it appears that the town still has the same issues that they had in 1960 when u moved there.
Very sad to me I am thinking the the best way to be effective in this town or any town is to have a firm No Bullying policy. This is strictly enforced in the Northern California public school system!
It is very effective.. Children spend many more hours at school than they do at home. This policy is posted all over the schools including elementary schools and it is Enforced with consequences! WhT ever these children learn at home with regard to hatred and bias, it cannot happen on school property and all teachers and staff are dedicated to this policy. It works because if there an infraction, the parents are involved-immediately-
This is factual – my daughter has been an elementary school teacher for 22 years in several schools and she has taught several grades. That said, this policy has merit for any and all bullying what ever the content of the issue is…racial, color or gender!
Jan Frost
Is Westport a racist town?
Are we antisemitic?
Never ask a question you already know the answer to.
we are not.
If someone experiences racism through actions or words, then racism exists. It does not mean that Westport as a town is racist, only that racism has occurred. Face it, respond to it, and combat it. Denial is a useless waste of energy. I’m with you, Dan.
Dan and fellow residents thanks for this article and for your active engagement. One of the things I have appreciated about our town is how we speak up for what matters and how we come together for what matters. On this journey, it might be helpful to understand that we don’t need to be defensive or prove that we are better than another town. We just need to commit to do the work to continue to grow as a town and as citizens. Children don’t grow up in isolation. There are several key stakeholders who shape their development – we are all accountable. The work is not just for the school system to do. Additionally, if we don’t appreciate that there are consequences for actions, when one enters the real world, the consequences become even greater. Now is when the teachable moments should happen, not later. This is a learning town known for its commitment to excellence in education, and now, we as part of that mission, are saying that upholding our collective humanity is a part of that. It doesn’t make us less than instead it says we are continuing to raise the bar. Let us all attack the problem rather than each other.
Well said, Ngassam. Thank you, and thank you, Dan, for the role you play in this “learning town.”
so well stated as I said on the other Facebook post you did. thank you for the open dialogue instead of finger pointing of a whole town of people that are mostly not racist or antisemitic. can we improve and dialogue and learn more? yes. but to make this a national issue about Westport, no. There are many surrounding towns that people would never move to and live in because of the amount of racism and antisemitism that exists in those areas. IYKYK. Let’s do the work to improve how kids act and teach them how to handle these negative interactions and let’s stop this – are we racist? are we antisemitic? No this town is not and that is why many people have moved here because it is so inclusive and accepting.
My mother, Hermione Eisenberg Sakolsky worked with Walt Melillo as a 3rd grade teacher at Burr Farms, and was part of the Project Concern experiment. I, as a Staples senior, was on the quadrangle that day after MLK’s assassination. In the aftermath of Dr. King’s assassination, I volunteered at a community center that served predominantly black children.
Punishment is never the antidote to prejudice. If anything, it begets more antipathy and resentment. On the other hand, one-on-one experience can and does change minds and hearts. Accounts abound of former Klan members experiencing a reversal from hatred to appreciation after finding a path to personal relationship with someone who represented “other.”
Perhaps, instead of lawn signs and monetary contributions, Westport kids should be brought together with kids from Norwalk or Bridgeport Community Centers or schools. Not in the forced scenario of Project Concern, but in pursuit of a mutually interesting project. Perhaps their parents should get to know one another. It’s never too late. What we have learned, we can replace with newer, kinder, learning.
Deb Howland-Murray
Former Executive Director
National Conference for Community and Justice
Fairfield County Chapter
Do not let a handful of hateful, spiteful, vitriol-filled diatribe deranged disrespectful individuals blanket or represent 28,000+ residents.
Are we a racist town? No. Do we have a couple out outliers? Yes. Does not mean the entire town is.
The entire town is not racist, but it is much more than a few outliers. Ask any person of color who lives in town. We feel it every single day.
Alex, you dare to speak the truth to the self proclaimed Mayor of Westport? The King of Virtue Signaling?
The Lord’s of Compo are not happy.
When Dan’s sucessor is writing their column in 2074 (hopefully as well as Dan), do we think things will have changed very much? Dan’s recounting of our towns history might suggest, not so much, but this is the thing about our ever evolving experiment, especially when looked at not just in the moment, but over time, change does happen in ways that would have seemed unimaginable to generations past. I was born a Brit and became an American citizen many years ago, and I can honestly say that while still not the perfect Union, I would much rather be here than any other place!
As a Marine “brat,” I went to four different high schools, from VA to CA. There was no discrimination for each race was equally represented with a strong military offspring representation. Actually we were sometimes tormented because we were considered “poor.” The main problem at Staples is there is no diversity, 97% lily White, and a diminishing economic diversity as well and in, now, a national political arena which seems to foster hate and division? Why don’t you ask the kids at the ABC House here what they think about your question? They know, not the vast array of commentators here who are basically making judgments on hearsay.
I lived as a child in Westport from 1955-62. There were no black children in Greens Farms or Burr Farms School then–my only black classmate was at Long Lots Junior High. Mr. Rudd, the librarian at Burr Farms School, was the first Black person most of us ever had contact with, and I never heard a racist remark about him voiced. At Long Lots Junior High, Julian Douglas was the only Black teacher; he taught crafts. Unfortunately his teaching did not measure up to that of the great Guyer Scott Wright, whom he replaced (nobody’s could), but again no-one made it a racial issue.
In junior high, we had discussions of race as the efforts to end segregation in the South were daily TV fare. While Westport was lilly-white, the sentiment of the students, at least, was they would have no problem living with Black people, but few Blacks could afford Westport. Today many Black people can afford to live in Westport and I gather that they are accepted.
When my family moved to Fairfield County, we looked at houses in Darien and Westport–I am so grateful they chose Westport. Who knows how my attitudes would have developed had I ended up in the former place.
Aside from mandated antiracism training I received in the mental health clinic where I worked as a therapist in the 90s, we were also expected to attend 2 day experiental workshops at Undoing Racism, where they taught us another side of American history. Did you know that the soldiers returning from WWII were entitled to free college tuition in the GI bill ? Black soldiers were not eligible. Have you heard about redlining which kept Black Americans in cities were relegated to the poorest neighborhoods, where schools were underfunded, services were poor, and the Black communities were not able to afford property or accumulate wealth. Or the Tuskegee experiments which lasted until 1972, where Black men with syphilis were denied medical treatment (penicilllin) so white doctors could study the course of the disease that eventually went to the brain . The white men with syphilis were treated medically and they improved. Currently Black women have a higher rate of maternal death than white women. In other words, this is not only about Westport. So starting with learning about the history of racism helped us to put systemic racism in a context .It helped us to be able to understand our clients. Of course other groups have experienced discrimination, but not because of the color of their skin . So blaming Westport is probably not the way to make things better. My opinion, and it is just my opinion , is we have to understand the context and starting with schools, administrators, teachers, parents and kids, (not all together) start having some training, based on American history. The more we know the more we understand how racism is perpetuated in all of our systems. Westport would be a much more interesting and culturally diverse town if people could afford to live there and people could learn from each other. In the meantime , let’s recognize the difference between bullying and racism. They are not the same.
I’ve said too much . And I’m still studying and trying to understand .
Julie: Just a point of clarification. NO soldiers were excluded from the G.I. Bill by our government, ALL were eligible. That said a majority of minority soldiers were prevented from accessing benefits because of racist laws and convention in the states they lived in. Horrible result anyway but let’s be sure of the facts.
1.2 million Black soldiers were denied access to homes in Levittown and other perks. They couldn’t accumulate property and wealth .In theory they could benefit, but they did not end up getting the advantages because of their race. Everyone can google “did Black vets get access to all advantages GI Bill promised”. let’s not quibble – I’m saying racism is in all our institutions. it’s a given in America . let’s try to improve things by learning about the history of racism. to start and to understand