Estados Unidos: Riverside Unified’s first black teacher, Hazel Hawkins Russell, dies at 93

Estados Unidos/Agosto de 2017/Fuente: The Press Enterprise

Resumen:  Hazel Hawkins Russell, el primer maestro afroamericano en Riverside Unified, murió el viernes. Tenía 93 años. A partir de 1947, siete años antes de que la Corte Suprema decidiera que las escuelas tenían que ser desagregadas, Russell enseñó a generaciones de estudiantes en la escuela primaria, secundaria, Cal State Fullerton y Riverside Community College. Ella también enseñó a la comunidad, dijo Woodie Rucker-Hughes, presidente de la rama Riverside de la NAACP y una educadora de larga data. «Sin ella, muchos de nosotros probablemente no estaríamos donde estamos», dijo Rucker-Hughes. «Cuando llegué en 1969, había muchos afroamericanos en su lugar, la gente simplemente te aceptaba en base a tu profesionalismo y experiencia. Así que le doy las gracias por preparar el camino.Cuando llegó de su lugar de nacimiento de Texas y durante gran parte de su carrera, Russell enseñó en la Casa Blanca School en el barrio predominantemente latino de Riverside.Romper la barrera de color significaba que a menudo enfrentaba resistencia, pero siempre la manejaba con gracia, según Rucker-Hughes.

Hazel Hawkins Russell, the first African American teacher in Riverside Unified, died Friday. She was 93.

Starting in 1947 — seven years before the Supreme Court would rule that schools had to be desegregated — Russell taught generations of students in elementary school, junior high, Cal State Fullerton and Riverside Community College.

She also taught the community, said Woodie Rucker-Hughes, president of the Riverside branch of the NAACP and a longtime educator herself.

“Without her, many of us probably wouldn’t be where we are,” Rucker-Hughes said. “By the time I came in ’69, there were many African Americans in place —people just accepted you based on your professionalism and experience. So I thank her for paving the way.”

When she arrived from her Texas birthplace and for much of her career, Russell taught at Casa Blanca School in Riverside’s predominantly Latino neighborhood.

Breaking the color barrier meant she often faced resistance, but she always handled it with grace, according to Rucker-Hughes.

“She was courageous and she didn’t back down for no one,” Rucker-Hughes said. “She could also work within the confines of a situation, so she wasn’t so combative where she was constantly (fighting) — she didn’t need to be. People appreciated her intellect and her ability to move forward without conflict.”

For instance, things were tough when Russell started at Casa Blanca, Rucker-Hughes has heard.

“When she went to the first meeting of the staff, people were looking at her like she was something alien and started moving their seats,” she said. “She stayed right there and held her head high, and by the time she (retired from the school) she was friends with everyone.”

Russell kept teaching into her 80s for one reason, said her daughter Vickie Russell: She loved her students.

“She just loved the children,” she said. “(She had a) strong work ethic. Especially in college, they became her friends. She would give them insight into life.”

With her own children, Russell loved to travel: Israel, Egypt, Kenya, Russia, Spain and England are some of the memorable trips, according to Vickie.

What she remembers most is her mom’s hard work and the lesson she passed to her family: “Be true to yourself.”

Russell wasn’t always recognized as a pioneer, and didn’t refer to herself as one, according to Rucker-Hughes.

“She didn’t make a big deal out of being a pioneer or a number one,” she said. “But she was a trailblazer and a fine example of good and truth and education.”

Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona, honored Hawkins on the floor of the House of Representatives in 1997.

“She is an outstanding advocate for increasing educational opportunities for minorities and those with special needs,” Calvert said, according to the Congressional record. “… Her enthusiasm and positive spirit served as an inspiration, and every student left Dr. Hawkins Russell’s class with a little piece of her in their hearts.”

She leaves behind two daughters, Beverly Russell and Vickie Russell, both of whom still live in Riverside. Her husband, James Russell, died in 1988.

Russell died at Kindred Hospital Ontario.

Funeral arrangements have not yet been made.

Fuente: http://www.pe.com/2017/08/19/riverside-unifieds-first-black-teacher-hazel-hawkins-russell-dies-at-93/