SOCIODRAMA OF BLACK STUDENTS AT A WHITE PREP ARA TORY SCHOOL*

Abstract

Black students attending predominantly white schools often experience alienation and misunderstanding. Many comments made by whites are frequently misunderstood, and subsequently confusing to them. These comments, sometimes made in ignorance, can cause anger and embarrassment among blacks. Some of these situations may not seem especially serious to whites, but may be most serious to blacks. Some whites fail to recognize the extreme differences in background and attitude. Most black students in boarding school situations are trying to adjust to anticipated but new situations as well as to many that are completely unfamiliar to them. Whereas the majority of the students are familiar with and have been exposed to the economic and social deprivation that often accompanies life in Memphis, New York, Baltimore, Washington, D. C., and New Orleans not many whites are consciously aware of such deprivation.