Students at Lowell High School in San Francisco came out Friday to denounce a racist incident that they say isn’t isolated – accusing the prestigious school of a long history of racism.
Members of the Lowell High School Black Student Union gathered with students of other schools.
“Ongoing racism at Lowell High School, we called the community to come in solidarity to hear our demands and call for action,” said senior Shavonne Hines-Foster.
Hines-Foster described an incident in January after a virtual anti-racism lesson.
“Padlet is a virtual sticky board,” she said. “Someone put pornographic, racist images and anti-Semitic images on there.”
The principal quickly condemned the incident, along with the superintendent and school board. There was also a promise to hold that person accountable. But students said this is just the latest in a series of incidents that date back years.
“I have known and learned for many years that there are many students, particularly our Black student population, that have been targeted with different racial incidents,” said Gabriela Lopez, the school board president.
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She also recalled a student walkout in 2016 to protest racism.
“I would say there is a lot of community support, more students came out than in 2016,” she said. “We’re pushing for the broader community to understand what’s happening and that is through an equity audit through support with SF NAACP and the national NAACP.”
She’s calling for the equity audit to determine if the school is doing enough to combat these incidents.
