Growing Up In America Series – Privilege Displaces Equality

Privilege Displaces Equality was published in CHRONICLES, October 2009 None of us growing up in Atlanta in the 1940s were under the delusion that we were equal. We were aware of a myriad of differences that had nothing to do with race or gender. Some were better football players. Others were better baseball players. Some could run faster. Others were…

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Growing Up In America Series – Measuring Decline By Prices

In 1939, the year I was born, gasoline was ten cents per gallon. A new car cost $700. A new house cost $3,850, and the average rent was $28 per month. Harvard tuition was $420 annually. A loaf of bread from the bakery was eight cents. Hamburger was 14¢ per pound, eggs were 19¢ per dozen, coffee was 40¢ per…

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How things change out from under us

Anyone who has been around for awhile and who pays any attention to news sees many disturbing changes. Recently I read a news report that two children, ages seven and eight, had an altercation at school during recess. They were carted off handcuffed by police. The teachers or principal had dealt with the boys’ disagreement by bringing in the police.…

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