NORTHAMPTON — The School Committee has moved one step closer to adopting a new policy that creates a special process for addressing incidents of hateful language and actions in a school setting, starting after the current school year.
The committee held a first reading of the policy, titled “Protections Against Discriminatory Bias,” at Tuesday night’s meeting. At its next meeting on Dec. 9, the committee is expected to hold a second reading, allowing for debate and amendments before a vote.
Unlike the previous version of the policy, it does not expressly ban displays of swastikas or nooses at school or school-related functions, but it retains the previous goal of using restorative practices to address “bias incidents.”
“After receiving the report, responders will gather information and devise appropriate strategies for communicating with, educating, and mediating between the involved parties, and when applicable, communicate with the larger school community,” the policy reads. “The aspiration is that with ongoing education, occurrences of Bias Incidents will be limited.”
In a Sept. 8 letter to the School Committee, Bill Newman, director of the Western Massachusetts office of the American Civil Liberties Union, warned that a proposed district-wide ban on “hate symbols” like swastikas and nooses, and an earlier version of the restorative practices plan, were unlikely to survive a potential First Amendment challenge in court. A separate district policy bans Confederate flags, except in educational contexts.
The Rules & Policy Subcommittee reworked the language to address the ACLU’s concerns. Dina Levi of Ward 5, a member of the subcommittee, said Newman offered to look over the draft, but he was unable to do so before Tuesday’s meeting and hopes to review it before the second reading takes place.
At the start of the public comment period, the committee viewed a video compilation of testimony from Northampton students who described how incidents of bigotry at school made them feel, using words like “bullied,” “hated” and “disrupted.”
“In the hallway, I have been pinched and touched inappropriately, and straight afterward, called the N-word,” one student said.
A transgender student said that a boy “called me the T slur” and threatened violence, claiming that “it was okay because you’re a boy now.” Other students described incidents of biased language and threats based on their perceived racial or ethnic backgrounds.
Levi said comments made by these and other students were “incredibly disheartening” and reinforced the need for the School Committee to act.
Other district policies are already in place to address intentional acts of racism and bias, including the use of racial slurs. Superintendent John Provost said that current policies ban speech that is not protected by the First Amendment, such as sexual or racial harassment, while the new policy addresses “situations where the speech is not necessarily a violation of law.”
“It could be protected free speech, but it’s still situations that we can follow up, with restorative practices, in order to provide students with a sense of safety,” Provost said.
The policy, which would go into effect on Aug. 31, 2022, provides for “disciplinary action” against anyone who knowingly files a false report of a bias incident.
Brian Steele can be reached at bsteele@gazettenet.com.