Which Way, L.A.?

Segregation, the US Supreme Court and Equality in Education

It was 50 years ago today that the Supreme Court's unanimous decision in Brown v Board of Education banned segregation in public schools, saying that separate schools could not be equal. It was 20 years after that before the decision was really felt in Los Angeles. Today, California schools are as racially segregated as they ever were. Mandatory busing, magnet schools and other efforts have failed to accomplish equal educational opportunity, even though the US Supreme Court said the Constitution required it. We hear some of the history and take a look at the future with a former LA Times editor who covered the historic decision, a former Dorsey High School student who's now an associate superintendent of the LA School District, and the director of the Loyola Marymount University's Center for the Study of Los Angeles. Reporter's Notebook: The Oregon Primary John Kerry has already sewed up his party-s presidential nomination, but as Democrats prepare for tomorrow-s Oregon primary, the New York Times says Dennis Kucinich-s campaign is -dead-but still twitching.- In fact, Kucinich was the cover story in a recent edition of Oregon-s second largest paper. John Schrag, news editor for Willamette Week, reports on the candidate with high hopes despite his low following.