If only they used Google Scholar…
Internet
If we needed any further proof how breathtakingly out of touch some people are, look no further than this contributed article to Forbes If I Was a Poor Black Kid.
If I was a poor black kid I would first and most importantly work to make sure I got the best grades possible. I would make it my #1 priority to be able to read sufficiently.
[..] I’d use the free technology available to help me study. I’d become expert at Google Scholar. I’d visit study sites like SparkNotes and CliffsNotes to help me understand books.[..]
Technology can help these kids. But only if the kids want to be helped. Yes, there is much inequality. But the opportunity is still there in this country for those that are smart enough to go for it.
Jaw, meet floor. Could he have been any more condescending if he tried?
The story has generated over 75 pages of comments on Forbes, not to mention dozens of articles written in response. I think Cord Jefferson from GOOD put it best.
Marks believes that the only thing low-income minorities have to overcome is terrible teachers and a lack of technological knowledge; the rest of their problems stem from outright laziness.
UPDATE: Not appreciating the irony in his article heading, Gene Marks has changed it to If I Were a Black Kid. The original title is still in the permalink.
Photo from the Kheel Center, Cornell University Flickr account, also found through Cord Jefferson's article.
