The following is an opinion piece written by the WHS Power Club leaders, Favour Ejims and Maya-Angelina Powell. 

It’s no surprise that WHS is a predominantly white school with just a few students of color, but this shouldn’t be the reason why months like Black History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month and Indigenous Peoples Month should be ignored. As seniors, we’ve witnessed the lack of acknowledgement of these months throughout our four years here. This is why we hope that people take the time to educate themselves on the importance of not just Black History Month, but the other months as well.

Acknowledging these months can create a more inclusive WHS and give people from various backgrounds the opportunity to embrace their culture without ridicule. It’s very important that the BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) students of Wayland feel welcomed and included. Even though we are the minority of this school’s population, we still deserve the chance to learn about the historical impacts that our ancestors have provided to the world.

Not learning about the history of BIPOC people can negatively affect everyone. Navigating through the world without a proper education of BIPOC experiences can adversely impact one’s ability to interact with diverse individuals in college, social settings and the workplace.

Throughout our years here at WHS, we have learned very little about the history of BIPOC. For example, when Black history was addressed in the classroom, the lessons were diluted and repetitive. From a young age, we often only talk about Black history beginning with enslavement or Black struggles.

It’s crucial that children are taught that the history of Black Americans begins in Africa, where Black Americans thrived for thousands of years in rich and advanced civilizations, before Europeans kidnapped them from their land, stripped them from their culture and identity and ruled them to be nothing but property for centuries.

If we weren’t talking about the enslavement of Black people, we were talking about Harriet Tubman, Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks during Black History Month. When students are taught Black history strictly during Black History Month, it produces the belief that Black history isn’t relevant during any other time of the year besides February.

Black History Month gives everyone the opportunity to dig deep and educate themselves. However, teaching students about the same few influential Black people for a whole month every year squanders that opportunity.

We’re currently in a period where people are taking the time to educate themselves and have difficult conversations in order to find solutions to many of the prevalent problems in our society. The 2020 social justice movements galvanized activists, change makers and leaders from all over the world. But most importantly, it made a lot of non-POCs self-aware.

The reckoning for change brought people from different backgrounds together, but unfortunately, this historical moment in our country was barely talked about in the classrooms of WHS. Many students can testify that the social justice movements were not talked about in depth or weren’t talked about at all.

“It kind of felt like they didn’t care to hear what we were thinking, how we felt or if we were scared or not,” junior Sambert Guerrero said. “No one checked up on us at all. During the 2020 social justice movement, I only had one teacher talk about the George Floyd issue. After that, no other teacher spoke of the issue at all.”

This neglect Guerrero mentions in talking about powerful moments in our nation’s history made a majority of BIPOC, Muslim, immigrant and LGBTQ+ students feel as if their issues and struggles outside of school didn’t matter.

Watching numerous videos of police officers mistreating Black people or seeing Asian Americans fall victim to hate crimes for no reason takes a toll on any adolescent’s mental health, especially if they identify with the same people who are being mistreated. Taking the time to acknowledge the mistreatment of marginalized groups in Wayland could create a community where kids and staff from all backgrounds feel welcomed.

Not only should we care about the different races that make up our community, but we should also shed light on the numerous current events revolving around Muslims all over the world. When the internment camps against the Uyghur Muslims came to light, the administration, again, failed to talk about this issue.

“There are a few instances where I don’t feel seen at the school,” senior Madeeha Syeda said. “For example, I don’t get a day off from school for the two holidays that I celebrate: Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Duha. No one wishes me a Happy Eid like we do for other major religious holidays. Just being acknowledged and wished a Happy Eid would be enough for me.”

Syeda’s comment adds to the issue of students from different backgrounds still wishing to be seen and heard by other students and staff. Saying things like “Happy Holidays” or “Happy Thanksgiving” has been ingrained into our vocabulary. Why can’t “Happy Eid” be as well? Recognition can go a long way for many BIPOC students who long for the day when WHS becomes inclusive for all.

Significant months such as Black History Month have been set aside in many schools for the teaching of Black history. However, the Wayland education system needs to make it a priority that educators can’t get away with teaching the bare minimum of BIPOC history.

Teachers can take part in the powerful role of educating children about Black history to lead them to a more conscious and knowledgeable future. We do have a long way to go, but we still believe that with activism, determination and unity, we can make WHS a more inclusive place. We need to work as a community to create an environment where BIPOC students feel safe, included and acknowledged.

To conclude, we must remember that:

“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept and celebrate those differences.”
-Audre Lorde