I was disappointed to read the June 13 editorial which urged readers not to assign blame in the case of the stay-away ordered issued to Pelham Elementary School parent Aisha Hiza, until more information is made available.
Hiza has been victimized twice (or more) in this disheartening situation – first by administrators who banned her from the school that her daughter attends, and second by those who insist she prove that the act was racially driven.
It is not the job of people of color to provide documentation and evidence of racism. It is the job of people in positions of power to explore and investigate their own actions, and to take responsibility for them. The intent of their actions is not what matters; rather the impact of their actions is what they need to take responsibility for.
Perhaps Superintendent Maria Geryk’s intention was not racially driven when she issued the stay-away order, but the impact of her actions meant that a family who was already marginalized (let’s not forget that Hiza’s 7-year-old daughter was the victim of racially charged verbal and physical bullying) was further marginalized.
The editorial stated that “Racial misunderstanding affects every part of public life.”
It’s only from a position of white privilege that one can call racism “racial misunderstanding.” And it’s only from a position of white privilege that one can insist on evidence of institutional racism. People of color experience and live with institutional racism every day, and when they speak up about it they are further silenced with insistence that they provide evidence.
I urge readers to disregard the suggestions in the editorial and instead of insisting on “evidence” of racism, to insist that school officials take responsibility for their actions.
Jennifer Page
Amherst