Black Teacher Goes Viral For Celebrating And Uplifting Fellow Black Male Educators
Black men teach, too — and Atlanta School Board Member Alfred “Shivy” Brooks is determined to make sure the world knows it. On Aug. 10, Brooks, a teacher at Charles Drew High School in Clayton County, Georgia, shared a now-viral video of himself joyfully greeting and “dapping up” his fellow Black male teachers. In the clip, his colleagues beamed with pride as he acknowledged their presence and celebrated their dedication, giving them well-deserved recognition for the work they do every day.
The video has since garnered over 119,000 likes on Instagram and even received a repost from Grammy Award-winning rapper Common, who called Brooks and his cohorts “Super Heros,” according to Fox 5 Atlanta.
There’s a Black male teacher shortage in the U.S.
Superheroes are right. Black male teachers are needed across the nation now more than ever, as there’s currently a dire shortage. According to USAFacts, during the 2020–2021 school year, Black men made up just 1.3% of the nation’s 3.8 million public school teachers, despite representing 6.1% of the U.S. population. Low salaries and heavy workloads have kept some from staying in the education field.
Brooks reflected on the disparity in the caption of his post shared Sunday, revealing that he’s often been called “a unicorn in the world of education.” Despite current challenges, he and his devoted co-workers at Charles Drew High School are committed to making a difference.
“At my school, I’m part of a tribe of Black male educators who can be seen in every hallway throughout our building. Black men make up less than 1.6% of all teachers in America… but at Charles R. Drew High School, they are seen EVERYWHERE!” he continued.
“Today I got to dap up, hug, and shake hands with over 30 Black male educators who show up every day for our students… modeling excellence, leadership, and care in ways that can’t be measured on a test. This is what impact looks like… this is what representation feels like… this is the magic of @cdhstitans.”
In a follow up video shared Aug. 15, Brooks went into more detail about the lovely Black men on his team at Charles Drew High School. According to the educator, many of the Black male teachers at the school teach a variety of different subjects, leading in everything “from math to literature… science to social studies,” as well as art and technology.
“And only two of them teach gym,” he quipped, before thanking fans for their support on his viral video.
“I’m so grateful for the national response to the video of my school family. It’s a blessing to have the world see the excellence I get to witness every single day,” he added.
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