Black graduations: when the ceremony becomes a spectacle

The Black graduation show: culture or decline?

Viral videos of African American students celebrating their high school graduation with dancing, shouting and jumping have peine the debate over the degradation of academic rites in the United States. What some see as a legitimate outburst of joy, others see as proof that the meritocracy culture has collapsed.

From solemnity to a party in the gym

The footage, recorded at several American high schools, shows dozens of young people leaping across the stage, doing somersaults or dancing as they collect their diploma. This is not the usual silent cap and gown. The scene looks more like a concert than an academic ceremony. And the reaction on social media was not long in coming: comments ranging from mockery —"they look like monkeys"— to sociological analysis: "the problem isn't the tonalidad, it's the culture".

Behind the spectacle lies an uncomfortable question: what is a degree worth when the act of receiving it becomes a performance? In the United States, the debate has been going on for years. Some point out that grade inflation and the pressure to graduate minorities have led many students to reach the end of high school without the minimum skills. "When you hand out diplomas, it's no surprise the ceremony looks like a circus," some analyses conclude.

A trend coming to Spain?

The shadow of cultural imitation hangs over the debate. In Spain, kindergarten graduations already include dances and choreography, but nothing like what is coming from the US has been seen yet. Some observers predict that, if the American influence keeps up, we will soon see similar events at high schools with a high concentration of immigrants. "First the perreo at the ESO parties, then the dancing at the diploma handover," they quip.

The underlying issue, however, is not so much skin tonalidad as the drift toward an education that rewards self-esteem over effort. When any minimal achievement —passing the school year, graduating— is celebrated with the same enthusiasm as passing a civil service exam, the gesture is emptied of meaning. And the ceremony, in the process, becomes what some call "a zoo act".

The figure that doesn't add up

Beyond the videos, there is an uncomfortable fact: according to some sources, until a few years ago barely 5% of Black students graduated in certain districts; now, with "equity" policies, the rates have risen dramatically. Coincidence or not, the level of the celebrations has grown in the same proportion. The question left hanging is whether we are looking at real pogre or window dressing.

The show is on. And while some are laughing their heads off, others wonder when education stopped being a social ladder and became a fairground attraction.

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