30 years after ‘hoods,' NC school again faces scandal over racist incident

Yahoo

2 hours ago

A Charlotte-area school district is facing criticism after a video of a student athlete using a racial slur circulated on social media.
West Lincoln High School and Lincoln County Schools administrators apologized Monday after a social-media video circulated showing a student-athlete shouting the n-word repeatedly, WBTV reported. The school said those involved were disciplined according to district policy as it continues to investigate.
'The behavior displayed in this video is deeply disappointing, unacceptable, and does not reflect the values of West Lincoln High School, our athletic program, or our community,' the school's statement posted to Facebook reads.
District and school officials are rolling out educational and restorative programs designed to strengthen respect, empathy and inclusion among students, according to a statement from the district emailed to The Charlotte Observer.
Lincoln County Schools did not respond to The Observer's request for additional information about what types of educational and restorative programs would be put in place.
A history of racism
In the past several years, West Lincoln High School, whose mascot is the 'Rebels,' have been at the center of multiple racist incidents.
Vandals painted the n-word and West Lincoln High School's athletic logo on the spirit rock at Lincolnton High School ahead of their homecoming football matchup in 2021, The Observer reported.
In 2010, students at West Lincoln arrived to find an image of what appeared to be the hood of a Klansman painted on the school's spirit rock as part of a senior prank, WBTV reported.
Since the incident, many Lincoln County Schools alumni have recounted incidents of racism at West Lincoln, ranging from waving Confederate flags as opposing team's buses approached to using racial slurs while on the field.
According to one former West Lincoln student, the roots of the school's racial troubles reach back decades.
In an essay titled '1993,' a West Lincoln alumnus writing under the name CE Martin recalled, while in college, seeing her alma mater 'displayed in all its racist glory' on the news.
'Our football field pressbox was painted with the Confederate flag, the same flag that hung below the American one on the flagpole, buffeted by the wind,' she wrote. 'The mascot was a cartoonish General Lee, fading on the bricks of a long-ago mural. It was 1993.'
Martin wrote that she was particularly struck by the horses that surrounded a group of mostly white teenagers chanting, with riders who 'wore sheets with eyeholes crudely cut from a pair of scissors, maybe that morning.'
Not just West Lincoln
Racist incidents in Lincoln County schools aren't confined to West Lincoln.
A TikTok video featuring two high school students at Lincoln Charter School in Denver circulated where students made racist remarks, WCNC reported. The school, which is not affiliated with Lincoln County Schools, prompted community outrage and public condemnation from school leaders.
The video was tied to a TikTok trend where participants posed awkward, interview-style questions.
'What about Black people?' a student in the video asked. 'I think they are all ... we should go back to slavery, you know they are all [expletive],' another student answered.
The Lincoln Charter school incident happened a month before former East Lincoln High School principal MaryBeth Avery issued an apology to parents after a video on race relations was shared with students at the school, The Denver Citizen reported.
According to residents and Lincoln County Schools alumni, responses from the district have always been swift, but little change has occurred.
'Nothing has ever been done'
Lincoln County Schools Board of Education Chairperson Christina Sutton noted a large turnout at the Tuesday meeting, with many attendees eager to address the board about the incident.
'We do always want to make sure constituents are heard, and we appreciate everybody's input and support at Lincoln County Schools,' she said. 'We do, as a board, strongly believe in transparency.'
She later told residents comments would be taken during a closed session, due to student and personnel matters being involved.
Lincoln County Schools took a smiliar position back in 2021 when racial slurs defaced school property. At that time, Superintendent Aaron Allen said 'we must recognize that we have a much longer way to go than some may want to admit.'
It's unclear if the individuals involved in that incident were ever charged.
When it comes to real change, residents remain skeptical.
'I personally feel like this whole issue should go to the NCHSAA because it is a fact that West Lincoln has had this behavior for at least 15+ years and nothing has ever been done,' Eboni Tinsley, a former East Lincoln High School student, posted to Facebook Tuesday.
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