Chapters (93)
- Cover
- Dedication
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sixty
- Sixty-One
- Sixty-Two
- Sixty-Three
- Sixty-Four
- Sixty-Five
- Sixty-Six
- Sixty-Seven
- Sixty-Eight
- Sixty-Nine
- Seventy
- Seventy-One
- Seventy-Two
- Seventy-Three
- Seventy-Four
- Seventy-Five
- Seventy-Six
- Seventy-Seven
- Seventy-Eight
- Seventy-Nine
- Eighty
- Eighty-One
- Eighty-Two
- Eighty-Three
- Eighty-Four
- Eighty-Five
- Author’s Note
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Books by Kelly Yang
- Back Ad
- About the Publisher
“Ladies and gentlemen,” I begin. “Tracking is a modern form of segregation. Kids are labeled from an early age based on how they do on a few tests and are then divided into separate tracks for the rest of their schooling. It’s based on the erroneous belief that we as human beings don’t change, that once ignorant, always ignorant. Once poor, always poor.”
I set forth evidence and examples, talk about systemic bias and racial bias and how it oozes into our subconscious and convinces us that we’re not good enough. I think about how people like my mom’s boss, Rosa (though I don’t say it), looks at my mom and says she shouldn’t be sending a child to private school. You are a maid. What are you doing sending a kid to private school?
“And so, I ask you to look in your hearts and ask yourself, what is the purpose of education? Is it to keep people in their place? Or is it to lift people up? I believe it’s the latter and so should you.”
“Bravo,” Mr. Connelly says. He stands up and claps even though he’s not supposed to. The debate’s not over yet. He’s supposed to wait. The fact is not lost on my teammates, and I catch a few eye rolls as I sit down.
Mr. Connelly leans over and whispers, “You’re going to be amazing at Snider, Thunder Girl.”
Later after practice, I’m putting books away at my locker, bending down to tie my shoes, when I overhear some of my debate teammates talking as they walk past.
“Did you hear him gush over how good her speech was?” Heather asks.
I freeze, hiding my face behind my locker. Are they talking about me?
“He’s just going easy on her because she’s a scholarship student,” Josh says.
“It’s so unfair. It’s not like she paid to be here,” Audrey adds. “We all have to pay for her.”
Wow. And here I thought we were all equals.
I fume as I walk over to Rosa’s after training. I can’t believe what my teammates said; I thought we were a group of principled individuals. That’s what I loved about debating: we may come from different worlds, but we believe in the same things—justice, ethics, equality. Evidently they’re just a bunch of words to score points from judges. They don’t really mean it.
The door to Budget Maids bangs against the wall as I push it open.
“Dani, where have you been? You’re late!” Rosa scolds me as she snaps her fingers, chop chop. “Get your uniform on.”