Black parents, disturbed by a video that recorded Princeton High School students singing a rap song by a Black rap musician that used the N-word, took the Princeton school board to task for its handling of the matter.
The video showed the students singing to “Dior” by the late Pop Smoke. The clip circulated on social media during the weekend of July 11-12, and the school district’s response to it was brought up at the school board’s July 14 meeting.
Bernadette Alexander said she was made aware of a “very racist” video of children using the N-word and homophobic language at a party that occurred in a private home.
Alexander said she was sad and disappointed. She said she as told that the school district does not have a code of conduct that addresses racist incidents that happen in Princeton.
This is not the first time that such an incident has occurred, and the school board has not been proactive in doing anything about it, Alexander said. She reminded the school board of another racially charged incident that occurred on a school bus, which resulted in the offending student receiving “a slap on the wrist.”
“Nothing gets done when it is Black people. When you had other incidents when it was the Chinese people and the Jewish people, the board and everybody else got involved and all kinds of things happened for that. Why is it when things happen and they use the N-word, nothing gets done?” Alexander said.
“We are demanding something to be done because we are tired of our children witnessing racist reactions and comments in Princeton. The school and the school board stand behind those children. There is no reason for our children to be exposed to that kind of behavior,” she said.
Alexander said Princeton High School Principal Jessica Baxter wrote a letter that acknowledged the incident, but she characterized the letter as “sub-par.”
The principal wrote that she does not condone the students’ actions, and that she and the high school’s administrative team had been in contact with the families and students to discuss the video.
Baxter wrote that she hears about such incidents “after the fact.” She said she had spoken to other students who were not involved in the video, and they expressed hurt and disappointment in their classmates. They are trying to make sense of why their peers, friends and classmates would think that it is okay to sing along to offensive lyrics, especially given everything that is going on in the world now, she wrote.
Ashante Thompson, who is a parent, said she had spoken to many Black families about the video, which she said needs to be better addressed. The school district’s response and Baxter’s letter are “not okay,” she said.
“If we are going to move forward as a district, we really have to dig into what happened here. We cannot keep saying things are a mistake. People need to be accountable and responsible,” Thompson said.
“I know there is a discussion going on in town about Princeton High School, and it’s not a good discussion,” Thompson said.
Interim Superintendent of Schools Barry Galasso said the school board attorney had been consulted, and his response was that New Jersey law is very clear. In order to discipline a student for behavior that occurred out of the district – in this case, in a private home – “there has to be a nexus (or link) between their behavior and a disruption in the school. In the absence of this nexus, the district cannot discipline the students.”
Thompson said she respected that response, and added that she was not seeking to have the students disciplined.
“I am looking for honest conversation. While it happened outside of school, it is still our children that represent Princeton High School,” Thompson said.