Jeneal Hobbs can rattle off the stories her children tell her about their days in the Pennridge School District: the white student holding cotton and yelling in the hallway, “Hey everyone, I’m Black.” A school bus accident in which the police were called and a white child told one of Hobbs’ daughters, “Make sure the cops don’t shoot you.”
A white classmate of her younger daughter, a second grader, said while talking about Black Lives Matter: “I only like good Black people, not bad Black people.” (Another parent said the school addressed the comment with a lesson on kindness, but without mentioning racism.)
Like a number of Black parents in the predominantly white Bucks County district, Hobbs had been hopeful that a district initiative focused on diversity, equity and inclusion would help educate children about racism, create a more tolerant environment for all students, and empower teachers to better respond to episodes such as those their children have faced.
