Oprah claims Philly kids can't afford to go to school

Oprah Winfrey

Jon Bon Jovi

Man! I can't believe what I saw on TV this weekend. Here in Australia, Friday night I think it was, they broadcast an Oprah special that featured the lame ass rock musician Jon Bon Jovi who was shilling his new album.

Bon Jovi is from New Jersey, near Philadelphia, and takes great pride in emphasizing his working class roots. Since he wanted to show his connections to his town, the special was shot in Philadelphia.

On the show, a large group of school-age children were brought in. Bon Jovi then presented each kid with a set of new school clothes from The Gap, a backpack full of school supplies from Staples, and a laptop computer from someone, I forgot who. The kids were thrilled to death.

Now here is what killed me. Oprah stood up in front of the camera and explained to the viewing audience (Australia, in this case) that these kids came from families that were too poor to buy their kids the clothes they needed to go to school. She said, or at least I got the impression she said, that these kids could now attend school, thanks to the generosity of Jon Bon Jovi and his sponsors. She was acting like Mother Teresa in Calcultta.

My jaw hit the floor. I know that Philadelphia has a reputation as a rough-n-tumble city. But when did it fall into the third-world situation when children were not given free schooling? When did having money to buy uniforms become a pre-requisite for attending school in there? If the school requires uniforms, why do parents have to buy them from The Gap? Doesn't the school offer cheaper, subsidized, or even free uniforms for those who can afford the expensive option?

This program makes us in the US look no better than third world hell holes like Pakistan where school is considered a luxury for the children of the rich. What happened to the No Child Left Behind Act that was passed in 2001? Did it say it was OK for parents in Philidephia to not send their kids to school because they couldn't afford to get some Gap Khakis?

Thanks Oprah for broadcasting a blatent lie to the world.