Black students at Boston Latin School have started a campaign against the racism they say persists at the nation's oldest public school.
In a YouTube video, organizers Kylie Webster Cazeau and Meggie Noel pointed to examples that range from the annoying to the infuriating - and urge other students to post examples under the hashtag #blackatbls:
"When you're the only black student in your AP US history course and when slavery comes up, they all turn to you," Cazeau says. She continues that when she collected "racial slurs and negative things about students of color" tweeted by white BLS students and printed them out and gave that to BLS Headmaster Lynne Mooney Teta, she did "nothing about it."
Responding - on Twitter - to the campaign, Mooney Teta writes:
Thank you #BLACKatBLS for bringing your concerns forward. Eager to work together to create a better BLS climate for all.
Some other examples cited by students on Twitter:
That one time I had to do in house suspension for cutting school because a Teacher saw a black girl exiting the bldg #ItWasntMe
"Can you come to Westie to work on the group project cause my mom said I'm not allowed in Dorchester"
"I don't know how to describe you, you speak too white to be ghetto"
When your people's history is completely disregarded
when people tell you you'll get into college only because you're black
when your teacher calls you the name of three different black girls in the grade cause y'all "look exactly alike"
When your peers are shocked at your success because they've let stereotypes define our degree of intelligence
When POC are the majority at every other BPS high school except for the one with the most opportunity
When you can't even have a hashtag voicing your experiences without white people somehow taking offense
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Comments
So are you suggesting that as
By anon
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:06am
So are you suggesting that as a white person I have done something wrong? And all other white people have done something wrong? What's your point of this article Adam?
Yeah, it's always about white people
By adamg
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:16am
Just like women complaining about stuff is always about all men.
Nobody's blaming you personally, Mr. or Ms. Anonymous, and nobody's asking you to do anything. But maybe if you'd turn off your Insta-Whine for a moment and actually listen to what these kids are saying, you'd realize that life's not all peaches and cream even at BLS, and that members of a particular group (in this case, black students) might actually have to deal with stuff that you never do.
I would just like to see you
By anon
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:19am
I would just like to see you being a little less irresponsible in the sense of falsely accusing people of not caring about any other race than white. That is dangerous and not acceptable.
Thin skinned much? Dangerous, really?
By adamg
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:30am
I'm no South End millennial looking to get drunk at a wine tasting and run down to Roxbury and start a race riot, please.
Where did I accuse somebody of anything and get all tough and dangerous? I was answering questions from somebody who seems to think that writing about a group of black kids complaining about something was akin to inciting violence.
"I was answering questions
By relaxyapsycho
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:32am
"I was answering questions from somebody who seems to think that writing about a group of black kids complaining about something was akin to inciting violence."
Where did that happen?
Right there
By lbb
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:10am
Right in Adam's comment. This is the asinine strawman question he was answering.
If the words in Adam's response are too hard for you, then perhaps "Of course not" and "Read it without a chip on your shoulder and it's obvious" will have to do for you.
Um, not getting that at all from Adam, Anon...
By whyaduck
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:32am
The young people have valid points. Racism is still present in many forms in our society (even if folks like you love to deflect that fact). And apparently at Boston Latin there appears to be an unfortunate issue.
Go to any predominantly black HS in Boston
By anon
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:54am
Pull a white and/or Asian student aside and ask them similar question, you'll get the same answers.
Really?
By lbb
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:12am
Really? White and/or Asian students say that people say to them that they'll get into college only because they're white and/or Asian? Or maybe that they speak too black to be white and/or Asian?
I went to a BPS HS
By anon
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:20am
And was given crap routinely for being white. Less the kids i associated with, my name and every other white kids name was "white boy."
I was always treated unfairly by teachers of color, except for two who i still see in Rozie Sq every now and then. Two of the nicest women i have ever meet!
I'v heard people ask Asian students if they eat dog. So ya it does happen, and its far from uncommon.
Still does not negate the fact
By whyaduck
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 12:26pm
of what is currently going on at BLS. Apples and Oranges. Oranges and Apples.
BPL?
By Allstonian
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 10:28am
What's going on at the library? And what does that have to do with BLS?
Typo
By whyaduck
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 12:26pm
Corrected.
Nothing negated
By anon
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 2:18pm
I don’t think the above post was meant to negate anything. Rather it was to point out that anyone can be the recipient of racist, disrespectful treatment. Everyone needs to be aware of how they treat others and be respectful. Of course, we all know that. And it doesn’t lessen anything that happens at BLS.
It's called white privilege
By Waquiot
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:25am
You know, the system is stacked to get white kids into college while the system is stacked to get black kids into jail. As far as Asians go, well, they are naturally smart, right? The statements are as untrue as saying that someone attending the most academically challenging school in the city somehow got into a college "because they are black."
I'm sure one of the points the guy meant was the "they all turn to you" comment.
The people of color argument had to be modified
By bulgingbuick
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 10:02am
when activists realized that Asians were outperforming everyone. Now its address the needs of people of color EXCEPT Asians. As Hispanic students outnumber Black students will we see antagonism towards Hispanic progression?
Ummm, no.
By anon
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:34am
Ummm, no.
I went to English High in the 80's (after leaving BLS - and no it wasn't b/c I couldn't do the work). As a white girl I was the minority and what you are trying to say never happened. I was actually more accepted by my peers at English than I was at BLS.
Why do white people have such a hard time with admitting the absolute systematic racism that happens every day in this country?
Adam isn't doing anything dangerous. He posted an article about shit that happens to these students. What would be dangerous is if he DIDN'T post it. Conversations need to start happening people!
Maybe instead of getting your tidy whities all up in a bunch you can try to see things from a non white privilege perspective. And yes if you are white you have white privilege. Realize it, accept it, move on from getting your white feathers ruffled and maybe try & make a change.
Sweetie
By whyaduck
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:49am
I work for MIT (which, you might not know, has oh, a few Asian students) and some of our black students are also feeling less than.
Want to try again?
Official "Non" Minority
By SwirlyGrrl
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 11:18am
As of 1985 or so, "Asian" was not considered to be an underrepresented group at MIT.
While there may be many
By anon
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 11:30am
While there may be many students at MIT who are from China and India, there may not be many from say Cambodia or Laos. Please don't lump all Asians into a single category by saying: "Asian" was not considered to be an underrepresented group at MIT.
Thanks.
And yet its OK to lump all
By bgl
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 12:39pm
And yet its OK to lump all the white and black people together? What about Ethnicity and Hispanics?
We're not supposed to say
By Refugee
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 10:31pm
We're not supposed to say "Hispanic" anymore. It's considered a bad word. You're supposed to say "Latino."
Seriously, if you submit a research paper containing the word Hispanic, then a standards committee will kick it back to you and tell you to correct your error.
Semantics?
By Mjolnir
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 11:10pm
Are you sure you weren't just using the wrong form? Hispanics and Latino/as are not the same. A Brazilian would be Latin but not Spanish, a Mexican would be both. And a Xicano.
Not a bad word
By Abrasax
Thu, 01/21/2016 - 5:56pm
Hispanic isn't a bad word, but it isn't a very accurate descriptor and it's usage is becoming more and more outdated. So it's not so much about being PC as it is about learning how to write with a professional or journalistic standard. I wouldn't use words like Afro-American, Anglo or Oriental to describe people, even though they're not typically offensive words. Usage of those descriptors would make the writer sound like she hadn't written in a few decades. Even Caucasian turns out to be a silly nonsensical word since it has been used to describe people from so many disparate places: Irish, Turks, British, Armenians, white Americans.
Surely the same goes for "white"?
By Mjolnir
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 2:29pm
These monoliths are not so monolithic, as people of Boston know very well. The English, Irish, and Italian are not the same group, and those three are substantially different from Germans and Russians, Polish, etc.
Who are you to tell me that?
By Pete Nice
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 2:41pm
I will tell you who is white or not white.
Not sure what your comment has to do with my comment.
By whyaduck
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 12:36pm
3.5% of MIT's current student body is black (this has been the percentage since 2004, according to the below article).
http://news.mit.edu/2015/black-student-leaders-rec...
It appears, per this article, that the black student body perhaps has more concerns than our "Asian" student body (not to say that they might have a different set of issues/concerns regarding how they are treated)- that was my point, in response to the original post.
Aaaahahahahaha
By erik g
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:57am
Oh anon, you warm my heart. How dare someone have the audacity--the AUDACITY--to question your god-given right to merrily bludgeon your way through life without being told things you don't want to hear.
Anyway, I'll be back with a UHub Racism Bingo Card as soon as I can get to a non-work computer.
Ooooh
By lbb
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:07am
"Ooooh, how grimy and sooty is your ugly ass!" said the pot to the kettle. Irresponsible? Falsely accusing people? Your post is full of both of these things.
When the hell did Adam do what you're accusing him of?
By bibliotequetress
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 6:44pm
And drop the "anon" crap if you're going to accuse anyone here of "attacking" you. Takes no time at all.
neighborhood tag?
By bob
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:30am
why is this post tagged "roxbury"?
you even mention dorchester in the article. I bring it up because the media has historically used "roxbury" to mean black, and I am hoping we can move forward from that.
Otherwise, I am happy to see that you made space for these students.
Because of where the school is
By adamg
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:04am
Yes, it's a citywide school, but it's physically in Roxbury.
Uh, really?
By lbb
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:14am
I would have said that it was in the West Fens, or if you insist, in the Longwood Medical Area.
It's in LMA, yes
By adamg
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:29am
And LMA is part of Roxbury.
If you say so
By lbb
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 11:11am
I used to live in the West Fens, and I would have said that BLS was a neighborhood school. Certainly they used the park for sports practices.
And they still do
By adamg
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 11:40am
Clemente Field is as close as BLS gets to an official field. But it's on the other side of the river. OK, not much of a river, but still ...
The Muddy River is a Mighty Conveyance
By 500Monkeys
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 2:12pm
The Muddy River is a Mighty Conveyance with a long and noble history. Just... sometimes much more river than it should be:
Muddy River Restoration and Olmsted's Vision
Mighty Conveyance? You've got
By chaosjake
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 3:22pm
Mighty Conveyance? You've got that right!
Actually, Fenway
By A
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 3:09pm
Actually, according to the government website its 02115 is Fenway.
http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/docs/dcf/boston-office-b...
Don't use Zip codes ...
By adamg
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 4:58pm
They're a decent approximation, but most of lower Roxbury is 02118 - and that's not the only variance in the city.
Actually, 02115 also covers
By anon
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 5:07pm
Actually, 02115 also covers the Back Bay.
If Sarah P. WESSMANN, p.p.a.
By wtf021
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 9:08am
If Sarah P. WESSMANN, p.p.a. Henry Robert Wessmann, Plaintiff, Appellant, v. Robert P. GITTENS, Chairperson of the Boston School Committee, et al., Defendants, Appellees. was in place back in 1992 I might have been admitted to BLS. I was denied because I was white.
Why would you have gotten in?
By lbb
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 11:15am
On what grounds would you have been admitted now that excluded you then? Did you outperform other students who were admitted on the exam (and were the exam -- and race, as you claim -- the only criteria for admission)? Or were you a non-Boston resident, product of private or suburban schools, who (after eight years of superior educational advantages) wanted admission to a Boston public school?
Sorry, It was me and my four brothers and sisters from Ireland.
By Padhraic
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 12:16pm
We came over illegally, scored extremely well on the entrance exam (I wore Acid wash jeans that day, oh the horror) and then took your seat. Sorry, not sorry.
My brother didn't get in and
By anon
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 2:23pm
My brother didn't get in and I did. You know what he didn't do? Blame a person of color.
This article is about "When
By anon
Thu, 01/21/2016 - 4:42am
This article is about "When you're the only black student in your AP US history course and when slavery comes up, they all turn to you," yet it's the parent post that's "whining." Riiiight.
So are you suggesting that as
By Scratchie
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 11:27am
Not at all. But one thing you (as a white person) could do, that would be really, really helpful, would be to assemble a list of what things black kids are allowed to be offended by. I'm sure you're up to it.
Not wrong for being white
By SwirlyGrrl
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 11:29am
Our Zero is wrong for being white AND oblivious AND entitled about having some "right" to be oblivious (defensive when others state the obvious because it conflicts with being special).
https://www.facebook.com/theguardian/videos/101538...
The point of this article is
By Carolyn Parker
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 7:31pm
The point of this article is draw attention to a very important issue that is often overlooked in our school community. It's important to understand we are not "blaming" white people. Our goal isn't to make people feel guilty. Our goal is to educate, inform and make change. What we wish is to be acknowledged and respected in our communities, in school and out.
I guess I'm getting old
By mrotown
Wed, 01/20/2016 - 8:20am
I just can't take anything seriously when it's accompanied by a #
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