School district confirms resignation of Pine View High School employee after blackface incident

St. George, Utah (KuTV) — The Washington County School District has confirmed that a Pine View High School employee has resigned after sharing photos of students wearing completely black faces at a football game in August.

The district's statement said, “The part-time employee has resigned from his position and the district continues to work to resolve aspects of our investigation. Additional training with our administrators has already been scheduled for the entire district and some meetings have already taken place.”

This comes nearly a month after two students attended a “blackout”-themed football game and completely covered their faces in black face paint. A parent told KUTV that the students received a spirit award.

PREVIOUS STORIES:

A photo was taken of the two students with the cheerleading squad and posted on a school social media page. In the photo, it appears as though no other body parts are painted black, just their faces.

A few days after the incident, Pine View High School Principal Mike Mees sent an email to the community, saying, among other things:

“Pine View's mission is to educate students in a variety of areas and prepare them for life. Regardless of the intent of the incident, we should understand why blackface is never acceptable and learn together. Its origins lie in racism, as a way for artists to mock, belittle and stereotype an entire culture. Even though this incident was not racially motivated, the outcome was hurtful.”

The full email from the headmaster can be found at the end of this article.

Eddie Wright's daughter is a senior at Pine View. He and his 10 children are black.

After Wright first saw the images after the football game, she spoke openly about the issue on social media and to school officials.

“This isn't necessarily a fight I wanted to fight. I've been in this city for 25 years and I've done it by keeping a low profile and minding my own business. But when something like this is so obvious and accepted, it needs to be brought to light. There needs to be conversations,” Wright said.

Since the incident, Wright has met at the school with school administrators, students who wore the face paint, and their parents.

“The meetings were somewhat productive. I felt like they were trying to keep things extremely superficial, so I had to step in to help each of the participants in that meeting understand the seriousness of the situation,” he said. “I think the steps the school has taken are welcome and necessary, but it can't stop there. If we stop here, it will continue.”

He said greater school district accountability for the consequences of racist behavior would be a clear and actionable measure.

“If something like this happens again, you have to be clear about the consequences. Something has to be put in place that makes it clear to people that this is no longer acceptable in the future,” Wright said.

When photos of the students circulated online, there were mixed reactions. Some commenters called it a clear act of blackface, while others said it was a show of school spirit in keeping with the “blackout” theme.

Many claimed that the students did not know that blackface was offensive.

“Ignorance is no excuse. Period. Ignorance does not excuse you from a situation,” Wright said.

Wright said he believes racial prejudice, discrimination and hatred begin at home, and the school district cannot completely stop them.

However, he believes they have a responsibility to provide a safe and enjoyable learning environment for every student.

“I don't necessarily believe it's the school's responsibility to eradicate racism. But if you know it's happening in your institution, you have to have the resources to address it when it occurs,” he said. “It's simple: You can't have a group of minority kids who don't have someone who looks like them or who can relate to what they've been through and who can give them answers or comfort. If they don't have that ability, you're falling on deaf ears.”

The Washington County School District declined to comment for this story beyond the above statement, so KUTV was unable to ask further questions about the content of upcoming training and additional in-school resources for students of color.

Here is the full email from the principal:

Dear Pine View Parents, Students and Staff,

The purpose of this letter is to speak with you about the incident that occurred at our last football game. Spirit Night is an opportunity to come together as a school community.

Unfortunately, the blackface photo shared on social media has left us rather divided. As a school, we are eternally sorry for missing an opportunity to stop the incident and educate and correct students. There is no excuse. We are sorry. To those who were hurt or offended, we offer our sincerest apologies.

Pine View's mission is to educate students in a variety of areas to prepare them for life. Regardless of the intent of the incident, we should understand why blackface is never acceptable and learn together. Its origins lie in racism, as a way for artists to mock, belittle, and stereotype an entire culture. Even though this incident was not racially motivated, the outcome was hurtful.

Everyone in our school community deserves respect, appreciation and fair treatment. Unfortunately, incidents like this create an atmosphere where some of our students do not feel safe. As school leaders, we will be even more vigilant and create a school where all students feel protected and welcome.

Pine View High School is committed to having conversations with our faculty, staff, students, and stakeholders and implementing actions to continue to provide the best education possible for your children. We know we can always improve, and we will do better.

Thank you for your continued support and consideration of this important issue.

Sincerely,

Mike Mees

Principal, Pine View High School

___