Posted on 11/08/2005 12:58:38 PM PST by day10
A dozen Tri-state high school students made quite a scene at the school halloween dance when they put on Ku Klux Klan outfits.
Students and administrators in Rising Sun, Indiana, say they're upset it happened and shocked the students would do it.
The principal made the students take off the outfits right away, but the damage was done.
9News learned the students were told they have to go through sensitivity training or risk suspension.
People in the community are also being asked to reach out to each other.
"I think you're surprised if one person shows up [in KKK garb], but sometimes good people, whether they're adults or kids, do things that aren't the best and make bad decisions and that's what we had. We had about 12 individuals make a very bad decision," said Superintendent Steve Patz.
The superintendent says neither he, nor any administrators, heard rumblings this might happen.
The students, all boys, came to the dance wearing sheets, dressed as ghosts and pulled out hoods a little later.
Students didn't want to talk on camera, but said they were surprised -- even offended.
The students involved will do civil rights research and write papers and the staff will work to improve the way the school teaches issues of tolerance and sensitivity.
The superintendent knows that everyone knows what happened in the small town and everyone knows who's involved. That's why he wants the community to help with the solution.
"I think it gets back to the education we need to do not only as a school but as a community about why these things are unacceptable," said Patz.
Church leaders are being asked to use their influence.
"As a pastor, I care about all the people in this community, regardless of race, and we want to be able to reach out to bring some understanding of what happened and probably some education needs to take place," said Dan Hunt of Bethel Unity Baptist Church.
There was one African-American girl at the dance, 9News learned.
Although the superintendent says he's under the impression the act wasn't done maliciously, it doesn't matter.
He says this kind of action regarding race, religion, cultures -- just can't happen.
It's really quite sad that you can't see a difference between the two. I feel sorry for you.
Agreed that respect for other people is responsible, but where in this thread was there a mention of a 3-year old, Cretin?
Because I don't believe your feel-good, goody-two-shoes attitude you think I need some sense? You might try and find some in the real world fella.....
You have no idea of the impetus for their choice of costume as I do not have any idea of what this church-going black girl does in her off-time so quit being so high and mighty. This was all 'reported' by some media hack and should be treated as such, newbie.....
Isn't halloween that holiday where kids dress up as bad or scary characters? So what is the problem? If they had dressed as Satan, there would be no uproar. If they had dressed as murderers, witches, vampires, of Democrats nobody would have objected.
On one of the first Halloweens that I lived in North Carolina, I set out with my two boys, aged 10 and 6...the whole neighborhood was full of kids in their costumes...then I noticed some kids had stopped trick-or-treating and were pointing at something down the street...so of course, I looked...
Here came two older boys,(judging from their size, I would guess they were young teens), and they were wearing KKK costumes...no, they were not dressed as ghosts, not with those pointy hats...
They came to a house, rang the bell, and were immediately chased off by the adults of the house...no treats were given...they then proceeded to go to other houses, and not one house would give them any treats, and ran them off...
A few weeks later, my older boy came home from school, and then he and a couple of his buddies made a phone call from one of the buddies houses...then my son came home, and he was very upset...he told me that a kid in school, was passing out slips of paper, with phone numbers on them, and told the kids to dial this phone number, to get some valuable information...and boys being boys, they did just that...
When they heard what they heard, were they shocked...they gave me the phone number, and asked me to dial it and listen...it was apparently the phone number of some KKK office, which immediately began spouting off their usual nasty rhetoric in a recording...it was really vile...there was the usual namecalling, and such, but there was also a lot of really vulgar swearing...
I was really upset about this, and so I called the phone company, and was wondering how they felt about this recording...I felt I should just report it...the person I talked to said that they were allowed to spout their rhetoric, but that the swearing and vulgarities were another matter...(that was their position)
A few weeks later, the phone company called me back, and told me to recheck that phone number, which I did...the recording had the same vile rhetoric, but it was minus the swearing and vulgarities...
And no surprise, the kid that handed out that phone number, proudly did brag, that he was one of the boys, dressed up in the KKK outfit on Halloween nite...
He was really quite disappointed that the majority of the kids that he gave the phone number to, did not share his bigotted views...because after all, he admitted, his good old dad had enlisted him to try to get new recruits to their 'cause'....I guess he thought he could sucker in the kids, and then sucker in their parents as well...well, it did not work...
But I had to wonder at their desperation, by trying to recruit the 10-14 yr old children into their dwindling ranks..
In the late '80's, a Black couple came to a Halloween party we had...dressed in Klan robes. At first, everyone was a little confused or shocked...But this couple, one might argue, kind of has a "License" to lampoon the KKK. They were known for a whacky sense of humor, and when the initial shock wore off, everyone was ROTFL. Mostly, I admired their err...brass.
The Klan robes, with the black hands coming out of the sleeves was just too much of a sight gag.
I recall many years ago, one black guy joined the KKK by mail, and was granted the title of "Kleegel" or something, where he was empowered to form local groups. His smiling photo, holding the document, was splashed all over the papers.
So it really depends on WHO is wearing the robes, and why, doesn't it?
Now you're just embarrassing yourself.
Sit back and watch virtually ANY thread with ANY racial theme. The morons come out in bunches and you can learn a lot....
actually pretty much ANY thread....
Just wait to see if Condi Rice gets a Presidential or VP nod in 2008. I expect that it will be an interesting time.
In the day and age of instanct communication, what took 8 days for this story to surface????
In the day and age of instant communication, what took 8 days for this story to surface????
Not me. But, that doesn't mean I am forced to grovel and genuflect before the gods of PC whose reach is so long and powerful, they are even infecting this conservative forum.
I think we're ignoring the bigger picture. If you're older than 12 and are still dressing up in costumes for Halloween, there's clearly something wrong with that person regardless of what costume he choses to wear. :)
Students Wear KKK Outfits At Halloween Dance, Community Concerned
Reported by: Deborah Haas
Web produced by: Mark Sickmiller
Photographed by: 9News
First posted: 11/1/2005 6:04:24 PM [9News]
going dressed as Democrats is a big story?
Nope. I think your answer clarifies things quite a bit.
Not only black Americans need to worry about that.
* Between 2001 and 2003, blacks committed, on average, 15,400 black-on-white rapes per year, while whites averaged only 900 white-on-black rapes per year.
* Of the nearly 770,000 violent interracial crimes committed every year involving blacks and whites, blacks commit 85 percent and whites commit 15 percent.
Wrong.
Dallas Morning News, 10/28/05
"Students at Highland Park High School dressed as gang members, rap stars, maids and yard workers this month during homecoming week a tradition one Dallas civil-rights leader says is racially insensitive.
"On senior Thug Day, students wore Afro wigs, fake gold teeth and baggy jeans. On Fiesta Day, which was to honor Hispanic heritage, one student brought a leaf blower to school. "
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/102805dnmethighlandpark.220e85f.html
That I don't know. Are you?
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