On February 2nd at 10:15 am, students at Mt. Hebron High School (MTH) in Ellicott City, MD staged a walkout in protest of racism within the schools. While there have been countless instances of racism at the high school throughout the years, the protest came in response to a video of an MTH student claiming that black lives do not matter. In the video, which was recorded at a party, he is asked if they matter. He replies, “No, of course they don’t! They’re an inferior race!”
The peaceful protest was organized in order to get students’ voices heard. Multiple students gave speeches, some written in advance and some not, regarding both the injustices they experience and the ones they witness at school. Members of the community and students from other local high schools were in attendance, but Mt. Hebron’s principal and the local police required that those who were not MTH students stay across street from the school entrance, where the protest was being held.
While this is not the first protest held by high school students (in fact, students in Clovis, California recently protested an unfair dress code), this is the first protest within the Black Lives Matter movement to take place so close to home. I am from Ellicott City. I did not attend Mt. Hebron, but many of my friends did.
Mt. Hebron is a part of the Howard County Public School System, which has always prided itself on being inclusive of all types of people. However, that is easy to say when the schools are diverse. Many of the county’s high schools boast a larger minority population than white population. There is a key difference, though, between simply having minority students and actively making them feel safe and wanted. Inclusion is an action.
This protest represents a larger problem within the public school system. It seems as if adults believe that they cannot be racist if they are friends with or teach minority students. This thinking is akin to the phrase often said regarding homophobia and the LGBT+ community, “I’m not homophobic! I have a gay friend.” Knowing someone that belongs to a minority group does not automatically make someone accepting of every person within that group. Enjoying Star Wars and enjoying all Sci-Fi movies is not the same thing.
Racism, along with sexism, homophobia, and so many other problematic ideologies, has been institutionalized, because we are taught to be racist. Our parents don’t sit us down and say, “Whites are the only people who matter,” (hopefully). We learn how to be racist through the little things. An absence of black characters in the books I used to read and the shows I used to watch. The abundance of white men in my history books. The fact that throughout twelve years of public school, almost of all of my teachers were white. The fact that I, a white female, was able to get away with things that a black male student would have been punished for. It is our responsibility to rid ourselves of the racist mindset that society has provided us with. We need to actively unlearn racism.
Many of the members of our generation recognize the need to do so, and strive to achieve a truly open and accepting way of thinking. Meanwhile, many members of the generation before us believe that racism only exists in the obvious ways, like using the n-word. Since they don’t participate in those behaviors, and since they have friends who belong to minority groups, then they are not racist. Since the school system is run by people with this kind of mindset, it only makes sense that they are not making more of an effort to be inclusive of all peoples. A principal can say that he or she cares about the safety of every single one of their students and think they mean it. But when a disproportionate amount of black students are getting detentions or failing classes, then that statement is simply not true. Words are not enough to combat racism. As cliche as it is, actions really do speak louder than words. Currently, school administrators might as well be giving an oscar-worthy performance while sitting on their hands.
The students at Mt. Hebron High School are an incredible example for the rest of the nation. By standing in front of the school, they showed that students can have a voice. They can illuminate issues. They have the ability to get noticed and the power to demand change. They demonstrated that our generation is passionate and determined. We will not accept mediocrity, because we know that we deserve better. We are not acting entitled by raising our voices; we are acting courageous. We all grew up hearing the phrase, “The world’s just not fair,” and we’re sick of it. Why can’t the world be fair? If we have to scream in order to achieve fairness, then we will. We are prepared to lose our voices.
For More Information:
Clovis, California Student Protest: http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2016/02/02/students-defy-gender-norms-to-protest-clovis-dress-code
HCPSS High School Statistics: http://www.hcpss.org/f/schools/profiles/prof_hs_all.pdf