Los Angeles

Investigation Into Black History Month Homework Assignment That Left Parents Outraged

"Someone could have said, 'No! Are we really giving this assignment?'"

Parents were outraged Saturday in the View Park-Windsor Hills area of Los Angeles after a controversial homework assignment was given to second graders.

"When I read it I immediately told her she would not complete that assignment," parent Kelly Gray said.

The math assignment out of Windsor Hills Elementary School used the words "slave," "master" and "cotton" - an assignment handed out to students during Black History Month.

Gray's 7-year-old daughter was sent home with the math homework.

"It's definitely disturbing using terms like plantation, master - my daughter doesn't know what these things mean," she said.

Gray was outraged at what she saw but doesn't blame the teacher since she said all second graders at Windsor Hills Elementary had the same assignment.

"I don't think it was a racial thing," she said.

The assignment still baffles Karole Gray. She said her granddaughters' school had homework assignments coinciding with the start of Black History Month a few weeks ago.

"Someone could have said, 'No! Are we really giving this assignment?'" she said. "I can't image a month of any year of any era when this would be appropriate."

School officials said they were investigating the case.

"This is Black History Month - it's hard enough to know you have ancestors who were slaves, but to hear it's blown up in this type of way is disturbing," said parent Karla Clark.

Gray said she's received Facebook posts from parents at three other schools claiming their children also received the same math homework. LAUSD said it takes this case seriously and is now investigating.

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