Abstract
The small area in the center of the Bay has a fascinating and tumultuous history that relates to the interlocking tapestry between Americanization, criminalization, and self-determination, all of which are key concepts to understanding the struggle to reclaim schools. Building upon these traditions of activism in Oakland, the Office of African American Male Achievement has picked up the baton and carried it into the school district. Modern-day school systems are a direct by-product of the capitalistic nation-state that relies on stratification to function. A burgeoning body of qualitative and quantitative research demonstrates that diversity in schools, including racial diversity among teachers and ethnic studies courses, can provide significant academic and developmental benefits to students. AAMA operates from a premise that traditional public schools were not designed for the success of African Americans. If education is a civil right, then an education for liberation is part of a larger civil war because those who control schools have their hand-literally.