The private California school accused of serving up a racist school lunch of fried chicken, watermelon, and corn bread in honor of Black History Month has apologized for "perpetuating racial stereotypes."
Administrators at Carondelet High School for Girls in Concord, Calif., had to face a lot of angry parents this week after featuring a menu of fried chicken, collard greens, watermelon, and corn bread on Friday as part of their Black History Month celebration.
"I'd like to apologize for the announcement and any hurt this caused students, parents, or community members," Principal Nancy Libby said in a letter sent to parents Wednesday. "Please know that at no time at Carondelet do we wish to perpetrate racial stereotypes."
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The school also announced it would hold a diversity assembly to discuss the controversy.
News of the racist school lunch sparked outrage from local professors and educators.
"Chicken, watermelon, collard greens — these stereotypes of black Southern culture that come from the same place where the N-word comes from,"
University of San Francisco professor James Taylor told NBC Bay Area.
The Atlantic Wire dug a little deeper and explored the issue of foods serving as racial stereotypes.
"A slice of watermelon isn't racist in and of itself. But when people talk about black people loving watermelon, they're talking about a lot more than food. They're talking about a stereotype with a lot of racist history — history still embraced by some of the worst people on the Internet," the site wrote. "History is important — any Black History Month celebration that ignores the experiences and portrayals of black people in this country is shallow at best. If you want to acknowledge black history this month, learn it."
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