Ads urging HS dropouts to go back to school are removed after being dubbed ‘racist’

The Portland, Oregon School District is dealing with its second instance of alleged racial insensitivity in as many weeks after complaints about posters aimed at school dropouts resulted in their removal.

Although the placards feature actual students who had graduated high school “as a result of [district] outreach efforts,” all of the students are minorities. Twenty-five percent of Portland Schools’ population is black.

“I looked at that and said, ‘Whoa this is a problem we need to fix,” [Julie Esparza] Brown said, the only minority on the Portland school board. “The message is we only expect our kids of color to be dropping out. What kind of message is that sending to our kids?”

According to OregonLive, other “Reconnect Campaign” outreach ads are more racially diverse.

Nevertheless, parent Kim Sordyl wrote to the school board vice chairwoman that “Your dedication to equity contractors/department assures me you will take prompt action to remove these posters from buses, streetcars, businesses, and public places,” and added she expects “there will be repercussions.”

Sordyl and Brown were two of those miffed at the district’s soon-to-be-revised memo directing school bus drivers to avoid playing rap music (in addition to religious and talk radio stations) while students are aboard.

From the OregonLive report:

“I think being short staffed in the central office has led to some very unfortunate decisions. These two instances highlighted that sometimes there is a need to go down and make sure we are looking at our messages from all angles,” Brown said. “It’s not an excuse. We really need to be transparent in that these kinds of messages we are sending are not acceptable. We can’t make these kind of errors it’s harmful to our students.”

MORE: School district is ‘racist’ for banning rap music on buses

When district employees aren’t putting themselves through the paces to consider equity, good intentions are marred, Brown said.

The district has spent millions on a “Courageous Conversations” program to instill awareness about racial sensitivity among staff.

The program to reach dropouts is wonderful and the impulse to put some consideration into what is played on buses is a good one, Brown said.