How the NAACP responds after Hanover student wrote racial slurs on bus

HANOVER COUNTY, Va. — The Hanover NAACP is sounding the alarm about what officials call discriminatory incidents that regularly occur in county schools that they say are not being adequately addressed.

During a press conference Wednesday, members of the organization said they could not remain silent after district officials said a Hanover student wrote a racial slur on a Henrico school bus during a Hanover High School football game last week.

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A Hanover student wrote a racist slur on a school bus during a football game

The group believes this incident “cannot be ignored” because it often hears about discrimination and believes new steps are needed to make students of color feel safe.

“Our children are experiencing harm, and our school system wants to ignore it,” said Patricia Hunter-Jordan, president of the Hanover NAACP.

The group is calling on the school system and school board to make greater efforts to hold students accountable and create safer spaces for students of color.

Hunter-Jordan called the bus incident “deplorable.”

“We want the JV team and all the players to know that we are not behind it, that we are against it,” Hunter-Jordan said.

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Community members shared stories of racism and discrimination they experienced in the county.

The organization called on the board to appoint people of color, recognize that racist acts are not isolated incidents and keep policies intact, including the principles of trust, inclusion and equality. The group also asked that district and school boards gain trust by meeting together.

“Now we think it’s time to go public about the issues that they have always been reluctant to address,” Hunter-Jordan said. “I believe that the trust that needs to be built needs to be placed in the school board.”

A spokesperson for the Hanover School District provided emails between Hanover schools interim superintendent Dr. Lisa Pennycuff and the president of the Hanover NAACP in response to our inquiry about Wednesday’s meeting.

Pennycuff wrote to the NAACP that the school system took the bus incident seriously, sending a collective message to families and students condemning the incident as racism.

The interim superintendent also cited the district’s methods for teaching anti-bullying, anti-racism and more. Pennycuff said she contacted administrators regarding the incident and asked them to remain vigilant, while saying she could not comment on disciplinary actions related to the school bus incident.

“While we cannot stop every student from making a racist or other hateful comment or decision, any more than law enforcement officers can prevent every crime or scientists can prevent every disease, we are working diligently to do our part by quickly disciplinary actions that take into account the seriousness of this reprehensible behavior and, equally important, the education of our students, as I mentioned above,” she wrote.

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