Over 200 college students at Hillcrest Excessive College in Tuscaloosa County participated in a walkout protest, following controversy involving a Black Historical past Month program, in accordance to AP Information. 

In keeping with the report, students declare that faculty administration advised them their student-run Black Historical past Month program couldn’t reference something that occurred earlier than the Nineteen Seventies, together with slavery, the Black Panthers or the civil rights motion.

200 college students walked out of sophistication at an Alabama highschool after they have been reportedly advised their student-led Black Historical past Month program couldn’t reference slavery or the civil rights motion “as a result of one in all our directors felt uncomfortable”https://t.co/75aqp1HvjA pic.twitter.com/oaqq7JZKR7

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) February 11, 2023

College students advised WBMA-TV that they determined to have the stroll out in an effort to have their voices heard.

“I really feel prefer it’s necessary to speak about that as a result of I really feel like in 2023, a variety of our youth don’t know their tradition,” Jamiyah Brown mentioned to WBMA. “Plenty of our youth don’t know the way empowerment has introduced us this far. That is necessary to teach our youth on how we got here from someplace to now.”

Lisa Younger, president of the Tuscaloosa department of the NAACP, advised WBMA that she and others have been contacted about one incident and later held a discussion board on the matter, the place they have been advised the tradition on the faculty was not conducive to schooling.

“It was extra intimidation and the scholars have been involved they have been visibly shaking. I might say some have been traumatized,” Younger added. “We requested them what they needed to do and we needed the scholars to give you a plan and we assist them.”

Tuscaloosa County Faculties Superintendent Keri C. Johnson released the next assertion after the walkout:

“The Tuscaloosa County College System helps our college students’ proper to peacefully reveal. Quite a lot of our Hillcrest Excessive college students have considerations concerning the tradition inside their faculty. We care deeply about our college students, and it’s important that their considerations are heard. We’re placing collectively a plan to ensure our college students really feel heard, in order that we all know the suitable steps to place in place to make sure all college students know that they’re valued.”

This comes after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis rejected AP African American Research programs, as a result of, he says, they “lack academic worth.”

Recently, the Faculty Board launched its the curriculum for its new Superior Placement (AP) course. Nevertheless, the faculty board ushered out various Black writers and students related to vital race idea, queer research, and Black feminism, which have been discovered within the pilot curriculum examined out in faculties throughout the nation this yr. Black Lives Matter was additionally stripped as a required matter of the course, whereas “Black conservatism” was added.