San Marcos High School has “instituted consequences” on a group of students after they shared a social media post that “portrayed blackface,” Principal Dare Holdren announced Friday in a message to families.
The TikTok post featured a photograph of four female students with artificially darkened skin striking the poses of the “meet the gc” (group chat) meme, which is based on an AI-generated image of four young Black boys in matching school uniforms.
“The racial stereotype was reported to the administration through our Safe to Speak Up system two weeks ago, and our administrative team responded promptly,” Holdren wrote. “As the image has continued to circulate among students and has affected members of our school community, we believe it is important to address it with our broader community as well.”
The school contacted the offenders’ families and “are working to educate the students about the impact of their actions,” he said. Holdren did not disclose any details about the consequences that were imposed and did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
“Racial stereotypes are harmful and have no place in our schools,” he continued in his message. “Regardless of intent, students need to understand the impact their words, images, and actions can have on others.”
The incident comes less than a year after a substitute teacher was removed from San Marcos after reading the N-word aloud during a classroom discussion of Of Mice and Men, despite explicit instructions not to.
This June, Santa Barbara Unified School District students told the school board that racial slurs and anti-Black harassment remain persistent across campuses despite years of district initiatives aimed at combating racism. Students described a Dos Pueblos High School staff member allegedly treating use of the N-word as an offense punishable by putting a dollar in a “swear jar,” as well as Black students being subjected to slurs and monkey noises.
Speakers criticized what they described as inconsistent consequences and inadequate responses from administrators, and called for a zero-tolerance policy on racial slurs, stronger discipline, full investigations of reported incidents, and more teacher training.
In 2022, the mother of a Santa Barbara Junior High School student said her son was subjected to racist slurs and assaulted by classmates during class. According to the mother, students called him the N-word, pinned him down, knelt on his head and neck, and invoked George Floyd. Santa Barbara Unified condemned the incident and said “corrective action” was taken.
The Santa Barbara Unified School District serves about 13,065 students, with Hispanic or Latino students making up the majority of enrollment at roughly 58 percent. White students account for 32 percent of the student body, while 4 percent identify as two or more races. Asian students make up 2 percent of enrollment, and African American, Filipino, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Pacific Islander students each account for less than one percent.
This is a developing story. Check Independent.com for updates.
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