"U.S. president Donald Trump shared a racist video on his Truth Social account in which former American president and first lady Barack and Michelle Obama were depicted as apes. I was unsurprised, yet nonetheless disgusted. U.S. senator Jon Ossoff also found the video unacceptable. He said during a rally in Atlanta that Donald Trump was "posting about the Obamas like a Klansman.""
"I do not make excuses for people who say and do racist things. I do, however, assume some level of what I call "educational responsibility" for such actions. By this, I mean that I ask myself and other colleagues questions like, "Where in the K-12 curriculum and in college classrooms do we explicitly teach students why that statement or behavior is racist?""
"There is a chance that not many Americans understand what Ossoff meant by that. It is plausible that older Americans who were once youngsters never learned anything at home, in schools or anyplace else about the history of Black people being associated with monkeys and apes, and why it is beyond problematic. Abby Phillip, host of CNN NewsNight, offered a clear explanation on her show following the Trump incident."
Donald Trump shared a racist video on Truth Social depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes. Jon Ossoff condemned the post, saying Trump was "posting about the Obamas like a Klansman." Many Americans may not understand the historical linkage between Black people and apes and why such depictions are deeply offensive. Educators hold responsibility to teach K-12 and college students about this history and why such behavior is racist. Assuming students learned this at home risks complicity when former and current students commit racist acts. A 2019 photo of smiling teachers holding a noose exemplifies persistent gaps in racial education.
Read at Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs
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