lostinurbanism:Editor’s note: The Reader-has teamed up with Renata Cherlise, the founder of Blvck Vr
lostinurbanism:Editor’s note: The Reader-has teamed up with Renata Cherlise, the founder of Blvck Vrchives, “a curated visual journey through history,” to create multimedia narratives of black life in Chicago using the Sun-Times archive. This week’s feature explores the real Cooley High and the 1975 film of the same name.How Cooley High and Good Times shone a spotlight on CPSThe 1975 film Cooley High proved to be more than just a “coming-of-age story about black teenagers living in the housing projects of Chicago in the early 1960s,” as the Tribune once put it. The film, directed by Michael Schultz and written by Eric Monte, depicts the lives of the students at Edwin G. Cooley Vocational High School and Upper Grade Center—the real Cooley High. And, it explores the socioeconomic factors that hindered equal opportunities for black youth both inside and outside the classroom. Prior to being demolished in 1979, Cooley served 7th through 12th grade students, approximately 90 percent of whom were residents of the neighboring Cabrini-Green public housing complex. Parents and students at Cooley, along with those at other Chicago public schools, fought a continuous uphill battle for equal education. In a 1965 meeting with the Chicago Board of Education, Clarence James, a Marshall High School Sr. expressed his dismay with overcrowding in the classroom, as many students were left sitting on floors and windowsills due to inadequate resources. Read more via Chicago Reader All photos: Sun-Times Print Collection -- source link