Photo Credit: CBS Denver
It has now been a full year after the murder of George Floyd and by now the rioting has stopped and many of the memorials unfortunately are being removed. But at minimum, we don’t hear a lot of the heightened rhetoric that had become common that was making things worse and for the most part, people have learned how to behave by now in response to the events. Well that is for a Colorado school district that has viral images circulataing the internet of students emulating George Floyd having a knee to his neck while in blackface.
This entire event has been so egregious it’s lead to their principal, Rachael Ayers resigning. “I want to thank her for her lengthy service to the Mead High community for the past 12 years as a teacher, assistant principal, and principal, and I wish Mrs. Ayers the very best in her future endeavors,” St. Vrain Valley School District Superintendent Don Haddad, Ed.D., wrote in a letter to parents of Mead High School. The replacement for Mrs. Ayers is Dr. Brian Young, the principal of Frederick High School for the past 5 years.
When it all first happened, Principal Ayers sent a letter to parents saying, that it “did not reflect our school’s high standards of respect, character, and inclusivity.” It lead to a protest by students calling for the end of racism at their school.
Superintendent Haddad’s letter about the new principal stated, “As we welcome Dr. Young into the Maverick community, he will begin hosting student and community meetings to discuss advancing student success and achievement with a focus on a safe and inclusive school environment and culture for every student, teacher, staff, and community member. Please expect more information from Dr. Young regarding these upcoming meetings and other important information by the end of this month.”
This was one of the moments during that January 6th insurrection that was so angering, seeing protestors re-enact George Floyd’s death. I’ve written and spoken extensively about how my own personal opinions of people have changed after the events of last summer. I’m not sure if having a principal retire over an event such as this but if they felt they weren’t up to task to handle it, then they did the right thing. Even as children, what they did was disgusting and students shouldn’t have to sit in that type of environment.
