School committee discusses racist TikTok incident

May 5, 2020

MATTAPOISETT — When Old Rochester Regional High School student Jendell Teixiera found a racist TikTok video by a fellow student, she said on Facebook that racism in the school has not changed. At their next meeting, Mattapoisett School Committee members resolved to do better moving forward. 

At a May 4 virtual meeting, members discussed what to do about the issue both in the school and district.

Member Shannon Finning said she is “gravely concerned that this continues to be the behavior in school.”

The student in the video, which insinuated that black people are monkeys, took it down shortly after posting and apologized, but Teixiera still took to social media to express her discomfort. 

Finning told the committee she has spoken with parents of biracial students at Center School who said their children faced microaggressions, a form of small, backhanded racial comments, during school regarding their hair and skin color. 

Although the school buildings are closed, Finning said that the issue “cannot wait until we’re back in person” and more needs to be done.

School Committee Chairman Jim Muse said that the problem of racism in the regional school district “is not something that we can deny.” 

He said that something should be done about it not just in Mattapoisett schools, but throughout the entire district.