Students wear 'White Lives Matter' shirts to school on last day, school takes no action
meaww
June 30, 2021
Five seniors from a tiny high school in rural Pennsylvania,
Montgomery Area High School, wore matching "White Lives Matter" t-shirts
to the last day of school. The picture was shared by a student on
Snapchat expressing outrage at not only the racist messaging in the
picture but also at the lack of action taken against the boys in the
picture. “One of the most disrespectful things I’ve ever seen happen in
Montgomery,” the person who shared the picture wrote in the Snapchat
caption. “Only reason you did this was to piss people off and look like a
complete racist, not funny at all.”
The whole matter was treated lightly by the school and the
authorities did not engage with the matter in a meaningful way at all.
"They were sent home from school. It was the LAST DAY. There were NO
other repercussions," an unidentified source told VICE News.
"They even went to prom the very next night." They added, "Some of them
are seniors going off to represent OUR school and town." The small
Pennsylvania town has less than 2,000 people and has a reputation for
tolerating bigotry. It is also known for punishing those who speak out
against it.
Each graduating class has roughly 45-60 kids per class,” the source
said. “So in a town like this, you don’t really go against the grain or
you are bullied and ostracized.” The town has a 97 percent White
population and was described as a "very right-wing" and
"conservative-Christian oriented" town. The town's ideology is not far
from being racist. Even their district’s mascot is the “Red Raider”
styled after a stereotypical Native American with face paint and
feathers in their hair. Just last year, a group of Neo-Nazis was found
illegally protesting at a park downtown.
Chief Damon Hagan, Williamsport Bureau of Police told WNEP
that the group was dispersed to avoid conflict with a "counter group."
But no arrests were made either despite permission being denied for the
group to protest in the area. Considering this, it is not at all
surprising that the students were not reprimanded more seriously for
their racism. Barry Hill Jr., a Montgomery High alumnus who graduated in
2003 recalled how when he was a kid in the early ’90s there were still
White power rallies that took place on rare occasions in nearby small
towns.
The picture has since made rounds on the internet attracting outrage
from across the country as well as the empathetic residents of the town
who are demanding action. Sherry Lee Havonbrook from Montgomery wrote to
the local newspaper, Williamsport Sun-Gazette expressing disappointment
and demanding an apology.
"I was shocked to see a photograph of students at Montgomery Area High
School online recently. They were wearing “White Lives Matter” T-shirts
to school on June 4," the letter read. "These students should be ashamed
of themselves as this is a known hate group. I am ashamed for the town
which prides itself in having such a great school.
Havonbrook went on to write in the letter that was also published
online, "I’m horrified for the targeted students, staff, and those that
attend that do not align with such bigotry. I hope things get better but
I’m disgusted. We support everyone in this town and everyone is equal."
White Lives Matter, has been categorized as a hate group by Southern Poverty Law Center.
It is described as "a racist response to the civil rights movement
Black Lives Matter, is a neo-Nazi group that is growing into a movement
as more and more white supremacist groups take up its slogans and
tactics." It is an attempt to erase the impact the history of racism in
America has presently.
2 comments:
Folks, Haven't you learned by now that history cannot be erased. You don't have to like it but it's still going to be there. By the way, The Southern Poverty Law Center doesn't have a sterling reputation.
At that age I'd have worn the tee just because someone told me I couldn't.
I still might.
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