School reeling after ‘disturbing’ act of racism during Black History Month

Students, parents, teachers, and school administrators at John Knight Middle School in Dixon, California are reeling after a racist Instagram post on social media targeted the school, according to KCRA.

The incident comes just as Black History Month began this year.

"Superintendent Brian Dolan said a parent made him aware of the post on Wednesday and called a parent meeting, and news conference Wednesday night," reported Michelle Bandur. "'This is the most extreme incident that I've been connected to in any way about this type of speech. This type of actions with regards to race, nothing close before, and with complete disregard,' Dolan said."

According to Dolan, the post was a "twisted collage" of 20 images of five students and the principal — all of whom were either Black or biracial — posing smiling above the caption "Happy black history month to all of the monkeys."

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The student responsible has been identified as a seventh grader. This student reportedly could be suspended or expelled, and may face criminal charges over the incident. The school has also provided counselors to help children upset or traumatized by the incident.

This is not the first racist incident in a school to draw national attention this year. In January, the Umatilla School District in Oregon launched an investigation after a high school student broadcast racial slurs on the announcements at a basketball game.