Harris Voices: The Power of Storytelling in Progressive Policies

Sara Kumar, a student at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, has spent much of the summer of 2021 working with the Harris Office of Diversity & Inclusion – and Assistant Dean Michelle Hoereth in particular – to research activism and storytelling in Chicago. The narrative below reflects her findings, in her own voice, and any opinions expressed below are her own.

What is Storytelling?

 Storytelling is the most powerful way to put ideas into the world today.

–Robert McKee

Stories envelop us. Everyday there is an abundance of narratives, accounts, or anecdotes that fill our morning newspapers, radio broadcasts, and talk shows. It is the intersection of the fluid and unrestricted nature of storytelling and the powerful emotions evoked from individual experiences that then creates the ideas which McKee describes in his sentiment.

One may ask why we tell stories, and prior to these past couple months, I thought I had a clear understanding of what the purpose of storytelling was. Like many others, I thought storytelling was simply a form of fictitious entertainment used as a way to escape from personal realities. Television shows, school plays, and dystopian novels all came to mind. However, after these past few weeks of research and through seeing the way in which others tell their stories to achieve larger goals, I have learned that my concrete definition only scratched the surface of storytelling’s true persuasive impact. 

Storytelling goes beyond regimented statements on a page and is a way for people to share their personal experiences in order to evoke a sense of empathy and passion from others. It is a way for the storyteller to show their authentic self, to display their vulnerability, and to illustrate connections between themselves and broader audiences, ultimately bringing awareness towards a common humanity.

Storytelling is a form of empowerment and has the ability to create public alliances by phrasing an individual narrative in a lens that appeals to others. As Annette Simmons, author of The Story Factor: Inspiration, Influence, and Persuasion through the Art of Storytelling, states, “when you want to influence others, there is no tool more powerful than story.” Storytelling presents a three-dimensional world view that grabs attention, and the pathos evoked from each narrative then keeps that attention.

The value storytelling possesses in policy work is profound, with the concept allowing people to gain a greater understanding of the world around them while also seeing the challenges specific groups of people face. Storytelling is a way to spread awareness about why such disparities occur, and through this, it is a way of inspiring activism. Through changing our perspective on why we use storytelling, and looking at past uses of storytelling to then jumpstart present initiatives, we can raise awareness about key policy issues that permeate our modern society and find a way to use narration to then make a difference. 

An Introduction to Educational Disparities

For my summer research, I decided to focus on the prevalent issue of educational disparities and to analyze how storytelling can be used to elevate specific deficiencies in primarily urban school systems. Although America promotes a notion of equality, disparities have been present in the United States’ educational system for centuries. School districts that serve minority populations experience clear inequities regarding infrastructure and access to a variety of opportunities. Financial restrictions placed on schools in underprivileged communities result in lower quality curriculum materials, classroom spaces, and technology. Studies have shown that there is a positive correlation between a student’s socioeconomic status and school expenditure levels and a negative trend regarding academic need.

There are several reasons for these discrepancies, with a major factor being funding systems and tax policies that often leave urban districts with fewer financial resources in comparison to wealthier suburban schools. This triggers a plethora of problems, including challenges in recruiting high quality teachers to work in these poorly funded schools. As a result, administrators willingly lower the hiring standards to fill inevitable faculty vacancies, ultimately continuing the cycle of inequality in education. Furthermore, restricted funds in such schools lead to a lack of enhanced programming, poor building facilities, and a mismanaged infrastructure.

In many urban communities, and especially Chicago, education redlining only furthers this issue. Districting policies often delegate minority students to poorly funded schools, creating huge disparities on the grounds of race. (Inequality in Teaching and Schooling).

Reforms to this flawed system have been attempted. However, research has shown that access to student-tailored educational models is imperative to create more effective teaching, and this is not possible in under-resourced schools.

Educational reform needs to be addressed in this country, and storytelling is a way to elevate public awareness on educational disparities. The current narrative may discourage widespread involvement since the issue seems niche to specific communities. However, through the sharing of individual stories, one can hope to find groups of people who have experienced similar tribulations or people who empathize with their struggle, ultimately leading to policy changes on a regional and national level.

Various Forms of Storytelling Used to Promote Advocacy

There are several forms of storytelling that can be used to inspire public action. Each form shares a different world-view and grasps attention from a large audience. However, there is a necessity to then use the empathy and understanding evoked from personal narration as a form of disruption that sparks awareness, challenges popular discourse, and promotes change. The examples below illustrate forms of disruption, whether subtle or direct, and the resulting public realizations.

Public Broadcasting

In 2008, popular talk show host Oprah Winfrey conducted an experiment called “Trading Schools.” In her study, students from Harper High School, an inner-city public school in Chicago, swapped facilities for one day with students from the suburban Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville. Harper is located in a low-income neighborhood, and only approximately forty percent of its students graduate. In contrast, thirty-five miles away Neuqua Valley is located in an affluent community and has a graduation rate of approximately ninety-nine percent. These vastly different statistics are a product of the inequities found when analyzing the two schools.

Neuqua Valley has a plethora of resources and unparalleled facilities to promote student success. For instance, Neuqua Valley possesses state of the art gym facilities including a new Olympic-sized pool, large gymnasium, and a fitness center with new equipment. In contrast, Harper has a crumbling pool that had not been filled for years, a gym with an exposed ceiling, and a fitness center with dilapidated materials. However, the disparities did not stop there, with the music department and math curriculum being showcased as substantially better at Neuqua Valley than Harper.

Harper High School is just one example of the lack of resources and the abhorrent educational standards at some urban schools across the country and especially in Chicago. Statistics show that in the United States the top ten percent of the wealthiest school districts spend almost ten times more than the poorest ten percent. With these pronounced financial disparities, how can we expect educational equity?

Inevitably, Oprah’s experiment sparked a nation-wide discussion at both an adult and student level. The opportunity gaps were apparent, with success being much harder to attain at Harper High school due to the lack of high quality resources. A student at the respective high school stated, “when you want something at Harper, you really got to fight for it.” Since Harper High School serves a primarily Black student body, this example showcases the disparate treatment in education on the grounds of race.

This experiment produced a sudden awareness in not only the students, but also larger public audiences. The success of storytelling in advocacy work is often the reaction it produces, with the evoked emotions keeping one’s attention for extended periods of time. In order to shake power structures to a point where policy change is the result, there needs to be a strong feeling of tension and empowerment in a group of activists. Through Oprah’s study, she was able to bring attention to an issue that now cannot be ignored. 

However, even though Oprah’s video temporarily elevated these clear disparities, allowing for additional resources to be offered to Harper High, her efforts were not enough to save the school from eventually closing. Nonetheless, this should not discourage us but rather should challenge us to ensure we have the right groups of people listening to these key stories. She has widened the aperture on educational inequities and now is encouraging a more united front across socioeconomic levels to conquer these issues.

Spoken Word Poetry

Spoken word poetry is another powerful example of storytelling that shares enriching personal experiences that often can be seen as a form of activism. Through using inflection and strong language in its presentation, spoken word inevitably breeds compassion and interest from wider public platforms. 

In 2017, Boston Pulse, a spoken word poetry organization, was asked to perform an introduction for a workshop on why youth voice is so significant. Four middle school girls seized the opportunity and utilized the space to convey their personal experiences as Black females within the whitewashed American education system. In their piece entitled “Black Girl Magic,” they address the shortcomings of their schooling that overlook their personal needs and ambitions. One of the poets in the group states, “my life has always been full of white man traffic” to emphasize how entrenched racial divides have become in their everyday life. The poets’ celebration of Black female identity combined with the conveyed sense of struggle created a community through common experiences.

The four girls’ spoken word poetry soon spread across the country as they were asked to perform by both large and small organizations or institutions such as Harvard University and the Boston Education Social Justice Conference. And capitalizing on their growing audience, two of the poets advocated for racially equitable school discipline policies, lighting the match for discussions on how to best assist struggling students.

This short three minute poem illustrates the power behind storytelling. A sentiment found in an article written by Tony DelaRosa, an educator, social activist, and spoken word poet, reads, “in urban education, we often battle an imagination gap, with many of our young people unable to imagine themselves outside of their own zip codes. Exposing young people to spoken word can help them flex their imaginations — finding and using their authentic voices, and drawing from their specific experiences.” Instead of presenting a thirty-page paper on racial inequality, the four students told a compelling personal narrative that ultimately cultivated connections between themselves and an audience. 

Throughout the video clip of their presentation, clapping and words of agreement can be heard from the audience. It is this reaction and this shared frustration with the American education system that will then spur advocacy. These girls used storytelling to challenge the normative, racially biased policies of American schools, and by doing so, have created a tension between minority communities and policymakers which is a key first step to substantive change.

Protests

Much like spoken word poetry, protests are a form of verbal activism that directly confront public injustices, using personal stories and experiences as fuel for broader support. There have been several large-scale protests over the past year, prompted by the pandemic, challenging racial equity, school closures and policies, remote teaching methods, and loss of funding in predominantly minority school districts. However, although these issues are gaining more visibility in our modern times, such problems have been occurring years before the onset of COVID-19.

Despite being the third-largest school system in the country, Chicago Public Schools still struggle with maintaining adequate and balanced finances to promote high quality education in all neighborhoods. The Little Village Elementary sit-in is a clear example of these shortcomings, with parents and students of the respective school protesting the Chicago Public School system’s decision to relocate high school students from Spry Community Links High School to their already over-crowded facility in late January of 2016.

Without regard for the students and the potential detrimental consequences to their education, Chicago Public Schools made the financial calculation that by merging the schools, they would save at least $95,000 a year. A parent, thinking about the quality of schooling for their children rather than finances, stated, “there is no space whatsoever for any additional students to come.” A student went on to articulate the lack of space within the facility by saying, “some of our teachers are working in fire escapes.” Although Chicago Public Schools’ objective was to save money, parents believed that there were other options that the school system was not taking into consideration. Both parents and students’ were hoping to be able to get Chicago Public Schools to stall the consolidation for at least a year while developing better long-term, sustainable solutions.

Another example of public activism can be seen in the Chicago Teachers Union protest which occurred from October 17 to October 31, 2019. Striking for the first time since 2012, many Chicago Public Schools teachers advocated for both their as well as their students’ rights. While one of the primary objectives was getting a raise in pay, the protest also focused on acquiring more resources, decreasing class sizes, and hiring additional support staff such as counselors, librarians, and social workers to ease the burden off of the teachers and promote student welfare. Lasting fourteen days, teachers paraded around the streets of Chicago with signs such as, “School Workers on Strike for: Clean and Safe Schools, Justice for students and families, dignity and respect.”

Similar to the Little Village Elementary sit-in, teachers at Chicago Public Schools felt as though the large and growing class-sizes weren’t getting enough attention, with economics playing a larger role than the quality of education. Furthermore, teachers used their strike as a platform to highlight the unequal levels of opportunity for minority students in comparison to their whiter or wealthier counterparts. A statement found in a Fox Business article remarks, “instead of just adding to the tab via teacher raises and new hires, Illinois and the City of Chicago need to examine how they spend tax dollars and reallocate more resources to actually educating students.” This statement calls to attention the lack of budget-management in the Chicago Public Schools system, and by bringing these claims and personal stories to a large-scale visible platform, the teachers were able to publicly advocate for their cause and promote change.

Today, when we think about the protests that are taking place around the world on the grounds of race, personal stories like the ones illustrated above offer a reason for such struggle. As seen in these examples, storytelling is a way of bringing communities together to advocate towards a common goal. Through parents sharing their stories or teachers advocating for their students, power structures and administrators were forced to confront these respective issues. Contracts and policies were implemented that would not have been formed if it was not for this form of individual and group narration. The passion and drive behind storytelling is profound and is a way of empowering others.

Murals

Contrasting the direct, outspoken manner of spoken word poetry and protests, murals are a form of unspoken art that use symbolism to convey larger messages. Eduardo Arocho, a mural expert, states that “murals are the best ways to tell the stories of our community.”

Humboldt Park, located on the West Side of Chicago, is said to be home to the oldest surviving outdoor community murals. Dating back to 1971, their construction was spearheaded by a group of Black artists and activists and tell stories that reflect hope and struggle by illustrating significant cultural movements and historical events of the Puerto Ricans. One mural, for instance, showcases Black, white, and Latino gang conflicts with clasped hands in the center of the artwork to illustrate the resolving strife of these racial divides. (The Humboldt Park Murals).

Today, murals still appear at almost every street corner in Chicago, adorning buildings and adding character to the city. To continue promoting this public expression, an organization entitled “The Green Star Movement” has been working with schools and communities to produce city-wide art, with the purpose of evoking a feeling of hope within each schools’ respective students despite rising neighborhood violence. (Grade School Murals and the Green Star Movement). Today, countless murals can be found on Chicago Public School buildings.

One such mural is at Farragut Career Academy in Little Village. Although the exact date of its creation is unknown, it was painted sometime during 2014 to 2016 by 120 students from grades nine through twelve. Green Star Movement as well as After School Matters, a nonprofit organization which provides high schoolers with afterschool and summer opportunities, partnered with Farragut to create a wall of empowering people and messages. (Farragut Career Academy Mural—Green Star Movement).

Although the words “learners today, leaders tomorrow” found on the mural seem to be the most clear form of messaging with respect to the artwork, the mural’s bright colors and depictions of a musician, dancer, and students holding a star above their head tell a story of success while demonstrating career modeling. And while it is not explicitly clear in any singular detail of the mural, there is a sense of empowerment one feels when just glancing at the bright blue background.

Another mural can be found on the exterior of Horace Mann Elementary in South Chicago. Being one of the many pieces of community art that were completed between 2014 to 2017 at the school, this mural was part of a movement to make the school’s playground and cafeteria more visually appealing and inspirational to the students and community members. Five-hundred fifty fourth to eighth grade students worked on this mural which displays a variety of historic trail blazers. The mural includes a piece of the Chicago skyline and displays icons such as Louis Armstrong, Wilma Rudolph, Mae Jemison, and Frederick Douglas. (Horace Mann Elementary Murals—Green Star Movement). 

By showcasing these historical pioneers, the mural, similar to the one found at Farragut Career Academy, offers hope for the school’s minority students who may feel disparaged by the white-washed educational system. Furthermore, the principal of the school stated that the purpose of this artistful display was to “send a message to our community and our school that we are here. We’re here to do some great things in the community.” (Grade School Murals Show South Side ‘Doing Some Amazing Things). The silent form of sharing that the principal discusses possesses as much power as the direct activism seen in protesting and is another example of how fluid and interpretive storytelling is.

 

Throughout each of these artistic displays, there is a clear common theme of success modeling. Community art has the power to inspire others as it promotes optimism and resilience through sharing the struggles and perseverance of each respective neighborhood. Murals are an interpretive way of illustrating that storytelling does not always have to be verbal communication. As John Weber, a mural artist for one of Humboldt Park’s original works explains, it isn’t enough to know you are physically in a city, but rather you also have to know “what stories you are a part of,” with murals fulfilling that purpose. (The Humboldt Park Murals).

Conclusion

It is imperative to change the way we as a society view storytelling. After my past few weeks of research, my worldview on youth advocacy and how to promote policy change has shifted. Prior to this exploration, I truly thought that storytelling’s sole place in our everyday lives was on bookshelves or in movie theaters. However, I have now seen that storytelling has the capability to challenge assumptions made about political dilemmas and then reach a conclusion for possible next steps. Whether it be written, oral, painted or group protests, storytelling as a means of expression can bring awareness and promote change to continued disparities in our country and in the educational system. 

Storytelling’s way of humanizing and modeling of desired behavior is what gives it such tremendous influence. With every shared narrative, power structures are forced to confront the issues raised as they spread across the nation’s communities like wildfire. Widening the aperture on the purpose of storytelling has helped me realize that individual experiences, whether large or small, have an impact through commonality and the hope they give to others. 

There isn’t a specific place where one story ends and another begins since one person’s form of advocacy fuels another’s. The specific definition of storytelling that I once had, no longer fits the narrative since empowering stories are ubiquitous. And while change is gradual, the concept of a common humanity and shared communities hopefully will eventually lead to long-lasting equitable policies including education reform in underserved regions.