HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS OBSERVATION**

Outside the window in my living room is a high school. I have observed the students of this school for hours and hours, but often broken up into small chunks of time. When I go to work, I see them in the morning walking quietly down the street alone. When I'm home, I see them in the afternoon walking down the street, usually in pairs or in small groups. The main thing that catches my eye is the context of the situation. Many of these students do not live in my neighborhood and it's visually apparent.

I live in the North Side of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, which is right next to the water facing Manhattan. It's a predominantly White, gentrified neighborhood where most of people who reside here are not originally from New York City. If I walk to the South Side of Williamsburg, it's predominantly Hispanic or Hasidic. If I walk the opposite direction, I end up in Greenpoint, a predominantly Polish neighborhood. If I go further into Brooklyn, the neighborhoods are still predominantly White for a few more subway stops. Almost all of the students in the high school across the street are Black and Hispanic. Although they usually speak with an American accent, I cannot tell what their cultural ethnicity is just by looking at them. They can be African-American, Latino(a)-American, from the Caribbean, from Africa, or they may even have a mix of cultural ethnicity. Similarly, if they see me, they probably cannot see my cultural ethnicity either.

I see the students come from the L train in the morning, most often from the train that is heading in the direction of Manhattan, indicating that they could be from Bushwick or Canarsie. I see them going back to the train in the afternoon. They may stop at the deli on the corner outside the train station, especially for breakfast, but that's it. They go from the train to the school and back on the train. The security guard/police officer stands outside when they are dismissed to make sure they do not stay in front of the school for long. They are told to leave immediately.

So, there are Black/Hispanic teenagers going to school in a White neighborhood and are told by the police that patrol their school that they must not stay around the school. They do not seem unwelcome here, but there is a discomfort has bothered me about this for some time. There are many students who go to schools in neighborhoods other than their own throughout the city. But, for me, when I see this, I think of the segregation that exists in this city and would like to welcome them to stay in the neighborhood for a while.