Husband defends decision to enroll daughter in struggling Brooklyn schools, likens wife to civil-rights leader

Faraji Hannah-Jones, 50, said his decision to enroll his daughter in low-performing Brooklyn elementary and middle schools was a deliberate effort to confront systemic racism. He told reporters that, like Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil-rights activists, his wife Nikole Hannah-Jones would be remembered as a leader for social change. > "When history looks back on this, she’s going to be one of our civil-rights leaders," he said outside the family’s Brooklyn home.

The couple’s daughter, now 16, has reportedly fallen behind academically, a situation the parents acknowledge but do not attribute to their parenting. Faraji said the responsibility lies with institutions that have not fully integrated schools. > "Irresponsibility is not on the parents, the irresponsibility is on the institutions that never integrated their schools to begin with," he said.

Nikole Hannah-Jones, known for the New York Times’ 1619 Project, wrote in a recent magazine essay that she felt she had failed her values and her child by making the school choice. Despite that admission, Faraji said the family does not regret the decision, believing their daughter will benefit from their advocacy and the experience. > "We don’t regret the choice. I think as she gets older, she will appreciate it," he added.

Faraji, who works in information technology for a civil-rights organization, also praised his wife’s professional contributions, calling her "one of the greatest writers of our time" and a "very important piece to our American story."