A South Carolina elementary school is being run by a team reshuffle after a racist Instagram post that showed two professors dressed as U.S. Border Patrol agents in front of a roof.
Florence One Schools Superintendent Dr. Richard O’Malley disclosed that some people are no longer employed by the city or have been on leave in a text sent Friday to Royall Elementary School parents and guardians.
“As director, I did not tolerate anything of this essence in our school city,” said O’Malley in the email.
The staff shifts are connected to a photo of the primary school’s team getting ready for” Royall Cantina,” which was posted on Wednesday. In front of a walls, two of the professors donned ponchos, while the majority of the others donned ponchos.
O’Malley claimed in the text that the “unfavorable event” occurred on a professional development day at the school. He also said the school may have two “acting officials.”
“In the interim, Mrs. Michelle Wynn ( Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Education ) and Mr. Christopher Rogers ( Director of STEM Education ) will serve as acting administrators. Mr. Rogers, who has almost 30 years of experience in training and has been employed as the director of Carver Elementary School, will continue to serve in Florence 1 until further notice,” the email read.
The post, which was posted on Thursday, the same day learners started the school year, claimed it showed “an callous disregard for the recent challenges our Spanish population faces.”
The class expressed its hope for a positive season and to recover from the error. The problem has been removed from the Instagram page of the school.
Cultural justice institutions included, among others, spoke out about the blog.
Jerry Keith, the Florence branch leader of the NAACP, said the firm will track O’Malley’s actions “concerning the resolution of this matter” and advocate for good and really resolution.
Parent Annette Fling, whose children attend a different primary class in the area, spoke to WMBF.
“I was very angry. I was upset, offended. It’s upsetting. You try to live like that, and something like this is thrown in your mouth. You feel like we’re all similar. It’s almost like you’re a joke,” she said.
Isaac Wilson, the head of the Florence Democratic Party, said prejudice has no position in the community.
“I’m disgusted by the images that educated professionals have shared, but I’m more disappointed that people thought this tasteless screen represents Mexican lifestyle,” Wilson’s statement read. This kind of tone-deaf behavior is unacceptable in a time when we should be uniting areas to address issues that continue to issue us, such as racism and intolerance.