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(More customer reviews)From 1974 to 1987 the citizens in the city of Boston, had forced school busing legally imposed on them to desegregate schools. The upheaval locally and in the eyes of the world that this poorly thought out and ill planned debacle incurred on Boston's entire citizenry is exquisitely detailed by the author. Intertwined with this turbulent tale is the history of the cities beloved professional basketball team the Boston Celtics. The Celtics have won more World Championships than any team in basketball history, including ELEVEN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS IN THIRTEEN YEARS BETWEEN 1956 AND 1969 a record unmatched by any professional team in any sport. In 1978 and 1979 the Celtics had two of their worst years in memory, including finishing last in the Eastern Conference with a record of 29 wins and 53 losses, a won/lost percentage of .354 in 1979. So as the city of Boston was disintegrating in a sea of black versus white... and a ravaging legal battle... attacking the basic rights and freedoms of individuals in the towns that they had lived in for generations... the vaunted Celtics... who normally had the power to give their citizenry something to cheer for... and to forget... even temporarily... their daily woes... had become a disorganized... dispirited... team... that was tarnishing the true meaning of *CELTIC-PRIDE*.
The original premise of forced busing was to provide equal opportunities for a good education to all people, but the whole plan was flawed from day one. "SOMEWHERE DOWN THE PATH TOWARD DESEGREGATION, THE ESSENCE OF EDUCATION HAD BEEN SACRIFICED. MORE THAN *ONE-HUNDRED-MILLION-DOLLARS* HAD BEEN SPENT TO BUS CHILDREN FROM ONE NEIGHBORHOOD TO ANOTHER WHILE SCHOOLS WERE LEFT IN DISREPAIR, CLASSROOMS WERE LOCKED DOWN, AND HALL MONITORS WORE RIOT GEAR." Buses delivering black students to white schools and white students to black schools were pelted with rocks and turned over. As many students stayed home from school as attended school. Perhaps the most disheartening thumb-nail-sketch that crystallized the totality of the abyss that this mismanaged-misapplied-government-legal-blunder... was the picture of a white man "spearing" a black man with a FLAG POLE WITH THE AMERICAN FLAG STILL ATTACHED TO THE POLE in front of city hall. It could easily have been confused as the devils version of the raising of the American Flag at Iwo Jima.
The *FORCED-BUSING* situation caused such chaos that SOUTH BOSTON HIGH SCHOOL AND CHARLESTOWN neighborhoods "were transformed into a virtual police state; Boston police, U.S. Marshalls, and the National Guard were summoned with the task of "peace keeping". Helicopters hovered above the streets while the National Guard marched below, and the police flexed their muscles and snapped their batons on street corners and in school hallways." President Ford was quoted as saying: "THE COURT DECISION IN THAT CASE WASN'T THE BEST SOLUTION TO QUALITY EDUCATION IN THAT CITY. I RESPECTFULLY DISAGREE WITH THE JUDGE'S ORDER."
Throughout this sad expose on a city's judicial decisions going drastically wrong... the reader is intermittently peppered with details from different years of the Celtics history. One shortcoming of the book is that at times the author jumps from busing... to basketball... and back... and changes the year of focus that he starts with... and ends with... making it confusing at times if you are a person who enjoys statistical and year reference. The prevailing-overriding-poetic "dream/hope" of the story is based on the civil disorder vein, co-mingling with the drafting of... and signing of... All-American basketball player Larry Bird... whom they hope will help heal the city's wounds through their love of a victorious Boston Celtic team.
Two very interesting things to note are: 1) The 1981 Larry Bird led Boston Celtics who did win the NBA Championship... had a roster of six black players and six white players. 2) On the author's list of twenty Celtics and NBA figures that were interviewed for this book... none of them are Larry Bird.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Rebound: Basketball, Busing, Larry Bird, and the Rebirth of Boston
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