PRIVATE schools have been caught up in a racism storm, with
learners and former learners coming together to claim mistreatment of members
of the black community by school officials.
Students and former students who attended private schools
have created social media pages, where they narrate ordeals of unequal
treatment compared to their white counterparts.
The pages emerged
soon after the killing of a black United States national, George Floyd, by a
white policeman, sparking outrage and worldwide protests.
The campaigns,
hashtagged #Blackat, and mentioning the schools, also carry the Black Lives
Matter symbol.
The Blacks Lives
Matter is a movement which advocates for non-violent civil disobedience in
protest against incidents of police brutality against African-American people.
The government
yesterday said no formal reports had been made with authorities over the issue.
Primary and
Secondary Education minister Cain Mathema yesterday said that he was not aware
of the social media campaign or the alleged racism claims. “I haven’t seen anything, I haven’t received any
complaints,” Mathema said in a terse response to the Daily News.
However, some of the schools have dismissed the allegations
as unfounded. In a statement in response to the social media campaign,
Lomagundi College said it treated its students and staff equally, whether black
or white.
“It appears that we, along with other schools, have been
targeted by an individual/group who is bent on wanting to cause division and
hostility.
“We are a multi-racial school with a mixed board, staff and
group of pupils. We strive to live in harmony with each other while also making
use of the opportunity to learn from each other.
“The choice of posting public, anonymous and derogatory
messages against individuals is totally inappropriate and does nothing to
promote our college and our values, which we work so hard to develop and maintain.
In fact, it does the opposite. I therefore ask that all such messages be
stopped immediately,” the school said.
The learners accused
teachers at private schools of fanning racism by using derogatory words against
black students and barring them from taking on some sporting activities or
going to certain places on the schools’ premises.
“I eventually left because of the racism that I and my
parents endured. I was pulled out of class and told to pack my things because
my school fees had not been paid.
“An hour later, my mom came to the school only to realise
that my fees had been paid in full and there were white parents at the office
actually asking for payment plans and more time to complete paying fees for
their kids and yet, alas, their kids were still in class learning and here I
was, fees paid in full but out of class.
“It was very embarrassing and we didn’t get an apology,” a
former student wrote on social media.
Another Bulawayo
school, Petra College, said it was willing to engage individuals who felt they
were mistreated because of their skin colour.
“We take such allegations very seriously and want to assure
our community that we wish to formally engage with those individuals who feel
they have a grievance, not just to resolve the historic and current issues at
hand, but to ensure that together we build a better tomorrow for our children.
“We recognise the cultural pressures and expectations that
lead to inequality, and that our perceptions as individuals are often flawed.
In a spirit of unity, we want to learn from each other and move forward in open
understanding that is defined by our Christian beliefs and by our diversity as
a community,” the school’s board of governors said in a statement.
Another former
student at a private school also spoke of discrimination and mistreatment.
“So basically, during exam period Lower Six and Upper Six
are allowed to swim without supervision. So, my friends and I saw some white
girls swimming and we decided to also go for a swim but by the time we got
there, they were done.
“So, we got into the pool for less than two minutes before
a … staff member asked us to get out because there was no person in the
swimming team (basically a white person).
“The story then went to our house mistress and we were
punished. We told her that all the white girls that were in the pool before us
were also not in the swimming team but she brushed this off, saying she didn’t
see them in the pool (but she also never saw us in the pool). Basically, it
came across as white people can swim independently but black people need white
people to go to the swimming pool,” one of the alleged former students said.
Daily News
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