A 10-year old girl is having a traumatic Black
History Month due to racist instruction.
Sign the petition :
Remove the principal of West Woods
Elementary.
Dear friend,
Black History Month can be a traumatic time for Black school children. Many Black and Brown students are instructed by teachers who don’t have enough knowledge or understanding of Black culture to adequately instruct them about our history. At Hamden, Connecticut’s West Woods Elementary, in a district where 90% of the teachers are white and 60% of the students are Black, a 10-year old girl was cast in a school play as “Enslaved African 2.” She was instructed to lie down as if in a slave ship and speak about how much pain she was in. Those were her only speaking parts in the play.1,2
There is no reason that Black school children should be subjected to violent Black History Month curriculums and activities every year. These cruel and ignorant practices inflict harm on their identity and self-esteem as a result of their teachers’ lack of cultural competence and implicit bias training. Replicating the horrors of the Trans-Atlantic Slave trade as a method to instruct is an obvious misstep that has serious consequences on the educational experience of students, especially young Black girls. The Hamden Board of Education must consider the many incidents that have gone unreported and have directly affected the educational journey of Black students under Daniel M. Levy’s leadership.
Racism and bias in schools is a crisis that requires district-wide support, curriculum changes, and teachers who reflect the student population in order to undo racism in classrooms. Eighty percent of public school teachers are white,3 while Black girls are 16% of the female population in U.S. public schools.4 Every year there are reported incidents of students being made to re-enact racial trauma. Research shows that white teachers have lower expectations for students of color, and are significantly less likely to expect Black students to finish high school and college.5 This event has illuminated the reality that Hamden schools, and public schools overall, require deep and intentional work to equip teachers with the training and resources to adequately instruct Black students. It is time for Hamden schools to acknowledge the history of racism in our society and the multi-pronged ways in which it manifests both explicitly and covertly in scholastic settings.
The tendency for white teachers to “not see color,” or to instruct using racially violent educational material, creates conditions for students to experience racial trauma that can have long lasting effects throughout their educational journey. As principal in a school district where more than half of the student body is Black, Daniel M. Levy was grossly negligent in ensuring his staff was adequately prepared to instruct during Black History Month.
Dear friend, you have never wavered in your commitment to our children, specifically young Black girls, and we know you will show up again for them. You’ve stood up for four 12-year-old Black and Latinx girls who were strip searched at their middle school.6 You’ve called on the Blue Valley Board of Education to investigate the racism Camille Sturdivant experienced when her dance coach said that, “her skin clashed with the color of the uniforms,” and her, “Black skin would cause the audience to look at [her] and not the other dancers.”7,8 Black girls will continue to face racist abuse in schools until those in power are held responsible for their actions. By demanding the removal of principal Daniel M. Levy we can begin the process of undoing racism within the Hamden Public School District and hold those in power accountable for denying Black girls the education they deserve.
Until justice is real,
Brandi, Rashad, Arisha, Evan, Johnny, Jade, Future, Eesha, Samantha, Marcus, FolaSade, Jennette, Cierra and the rest of the Color Of Change team.
References :
- “Connecticut Parents Say 10-year-old Biracial Daughter Cast As Slave In School Play,” WTHR 13, February 2, 2020, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/227929?t=9&akid=40872%2E1942551%2ER1hO-T.
- “Can Hamden Unteach Racism ?” Arts Council - Greater New Haven, January 29, 2020, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/227930?t=11&akid=40872%2E1942551%2ER1hO-T.
- “The State of Racial Diversity in the Educator Workforce,” U.S. Dept. of Education report, July 2016, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/227931?t=13&akid=40872%2E1942551%2ER1hO-T.
- “Pushed Out : The Injustice Black Girls Face in School,” National Education Association Today, September 9, 2016, http://act.colorofchange.org/go/227932?t=15&akid=40872%2E1942551%2ER1hO-T.
- “The Power of Teacher Expectations,” Education Next, Winter 2018, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/227933?t=17&akid=40872%2E1942551%2ER1hO-T.
- “Binghamton Residents Protest Alleged Strip Searches Of Four Students At East Middle,” Press Connects, January 24, 2019, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/120698?t=19&akid=40872%2E1942551%2ER1hO-T.
- ““Black Student Told Her Skin Was ‘too dark’ Sues Blue Valley For Race Discrimination,” The Kansas City Star, January 24, 2019, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/120699?t=21&akid=40872%2E1942551%2ER1hO-T.
- “‘She’s Black. I Hate That :’ Dance Coach Told Student Her Skin Was ‘too dark,’ Suit Claims,” The Root, January 17, 2019, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/120700?t=23&akid=40872%2E1942551%2ER1hO-T.
Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Help keep our movement strong.
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