A school located in the suburbs of Chicago are responding after a video of a prom proposal went viral on social media.
Officials at Central High School in Burlington denounced the video, which contained a racist poster referencing picking cotton, stating the prom proposal and video were “highly inappropriate.” According to NBC News 5 Chicago, the administrators at Central High were made aware of the post over the weekend.
In the post, a promposal sign held by two white students reads, “If I was black, I’d be picking cotton, but I’m white so I’m picking you.”
One student, Kayla Haynes, told the news outlet that she along with groups of other students took offense to the poster and video and want school leaders to take action. Haynes said she wants her classmates to apologize. Her father said they are watching how the school handles the situation now that the video came to light.
“She handled it very well,” Eric Haynes said of his daughter. “The problem now is how the school will handle it.”
“The derogatory, racist remarks in the post do not reflect Central 301’s values or our standard of appropriate and acceptable student conduct,” the school said in a statement. “Central Community Unit School District 301 is a very diverse district, and we celebrate and value our diversity. Actions that go against our values of inclusion and respect have no place in our schools or our school-sponsored activities.”
Administrators said that students have been encouraged to contact school social workers and that members of the community with concerns can reach out to school officials.
The prom is scheduled to take place Friday (April 22).
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