California’s River Valley High School went viral on TikTok when their varsity football team posted a “mock slave auction” as a “prank.”
There’s NOTHING funny about non-Black boys jeering at Black boys standing in their underwear, looking at the floor with nooses around their neck.
The School District’s Superintendent, Doreen Osumi, stated the prank, “Tells us that we have a great deal of work to do with our students so they can distinguish between intent and impact.”
But the only “work” they’ve done was canceling their football season, punishing all players involved – including the Black teammates who were made the butt of the joke.
Osumi shared, “The District and site administration are working in earnest to identify lessons and programs to help our student body learn from this situation.”
But will these programs offer separate care and resources to Black students involved in or impacted by the prank?
America’s educational system works to protect white supremacy and “tolerates” us. These initiatives cater to the comfort of white students.
Black students involved or impacted should be offered resources and support, not punishment. And for the record: If white students are old enough to make racist content, they’re old enough to learn about white supremacy and make reparations!