To the Black, Brown, AAPI, Queer, & Historically Oppressed members of our Community:
We are sorry.
We are sorry you have experienced hatred from your neighbors and classmates. The school community failed to assert our belief in the values of diversity and inclusion in a timely way, which furthers the harm already done. We are grateful that the administration at Winthrop Elementary sent out a statement today. Similar to Dr. Tracy, we should have said the statement below sooner.
**We, in the strongest terms, denounce the bigotry and hatred children and families have experienced in Melrose. Individual and systemic racism, discrimination, and bigotry have been downplayed for too long in Melrose Public Schools**.
**Every child deserves to feel safe, respected, and valued at our school, regardless of their race or ethnicity. Bullying of all forms is hurtful, harmful, and completely unacceptable behavior.**
We pledge to create an environment in which every student feels included, appreciated, and supported. This means standing up against racism in all its forms and ensuring that everyone in our school community understands the importance of treating each other with kindness, empathy, and respect.
We call on every family in our community to lead by example and proactively show our children that bullying is never okay and racism is a complicated and entrenched system. We are committed to creating a school where everyone feels like they belong and where diversity in all its forms is affirmed and celebrated.
We call on the School Committee and MPS Administration to review, reevaluate, rewrite, and then enforce the district’s policies around racism. These policies must be updated specifically to address racist language and racial harm. We agree with the May 12th statement from the Friends of Melrose METCO and RJCC that the focus must be 1) improving communication and connection between administrators and Boston families, and 2) addressing ongoing issues with racist and discriminatory language among Melrose students at all school levels.
We call on the Mayor, City Council, School Committee, and MPS Administration to require educators and building administrators to enforce policies that address racism head on.
We recognize the humanity of our teachers and administrators and commit to working alongside them to develop our understanding of racism and our plan to address it in our schools.
The above will take time and community engagement, now and in the months and years to come:
1. Engage with the School Committee and MPS administration to demand district policy updates including concrete steps to both reduce harm to our community members and hold offenders accountable.
2. Participate in conversations with elected officials, organizations around human rights and racial justice, and the community to further the understanding and impact of racism and its harm on our kids.
3. Help our schools reach their potential with appropriate staffing, materials and growth opportunities. Our educators need our support to engage in antiracism work.
4. Attend PTO meetings and demand that our PTOs truly incorporate DEIB initiatives into planning.
5. Listen to neighbors and friends who are impacted the most, and then be willing to take action.