On Saturday, August 22 there was a Black Lives Matter rally and march in downtown Yellow Springs. The topic was Antiracism in Education. Arielle Johnson, one of the event’s organizers, said in a speech that white students are less likely to receive suspensions or expulsions when compared to their Black peers.
“The number of students that receive suspensions and expulsions positively correlates with the amount of altercations with the criminal justice system." Johnson says, "These black students in turn are more likely to drop out of school and are increasingly at risk of being caught in the school to prison pipeline.”
Multiple educators from Yellow Springs Schools also spoke briefly about how the district has and will continue to teach antiracism in the classroom.
This was the thirteenth consecutive week of Black Lives Matter protests in Yellow Springs, and they will continue: the topic this Saturday will be cultural appropriation. Attendees should meet at 11:00 am in front of Mills Lawn Elementary School in Yellow Springs.
Environmental reporter Chris Welter is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms.
