On the Come Up(76)

He starts by saying how much of a “beacon of light” Midtown is for the school district—it’s one of the highest performing schools, one of the most diverse schools, and boasts one of the highest graduation rates. He’s a crowd pleaser, considering how much he tells us to applaud ourselves for our accomplishments.

“I think we’re all saddened by what took place last week,” he says, “and I personally want you to know that the school district is committed to ensuring that Midtown is a place of safety and of excellence. With that said, I invite you all to ask questions or make comments as you see fit.”

Conversations break out all around us. Parents and students line up at the mics on each side of the room. My mom’s one of them.

The first question comes from a parent—how did something like this happen?

“Due to an ongoing investigation, I am unable to go into a lot of details at the moment,” Superintendent Cook says. “However, when that information can be shared, it will be.”

Another parent asks about the metal detectors, random pat-downs, and the armed cops. “This is not a prison,” he says. He’s got an accent, like Spanish is his first language. “I do not understand why our children must be subjected to these sort of security measures.”

“Due to recent crime spikes in the area, we felt it was best for the safety of the students if security was heightened,” says Superintendent Cook.

He doesn’t explain the cops. We all know why they’re here now though.

Sonny backhands my arm and nods toward the other mic. Shana’s up next.

She clears her throat. At first, she doesn’t say anything. Someone yells out, “Speak, Shana!” and a couple of people clap, including Malik.

She looks straight at the superintendent. “My name is Shana Kincaid. I’m a junior here at Midtown. Unfortunately, it’s different for me and students who look like me at this school, Dr. Cook. Both Officer Long and Officer Tate were known to target black and Latinx students far more than anyone. We were more likely to be subjected to pat-downs, to random locker checks, and to secondary screenings. Several of us have been in physical altercations with them. Now that armed police officers have been brought on, honestly, many of us fear for our lives. We shouldn’t have that fear when we come to school.”

There’s an uproar of applause and cheers, especially from the kids from the coalition. I clap along with them.

“It’s no secret that Midtown needs students like me in order to get grants,” Shana says. “Yet students like me do not feel welcomed here, Dr. Cook. Are we just dollar signs to you all, or are we actual human beings?”

I clap at that, too. Most of the students do.

“The uprising last week was the result of frustration,” Shana says. “Many of us have filed complaints against Officers Long and Tate. There is video showing them physically assaulting a black student. Yet they were allowed back on the job. Why, Dr. Cook?”

“Ms. Kincaid, I thank you for your insight,” Dr. Cook says. “I agree that racism and racial profiling are unacceptable. However, due to the ongoing investigation, there is a lot I can’t speak on regarding that specific incident.”

“What?” I say as my classmates boo and shout.

“We should at least know why they were allowed back on the job!” Shana says.

“Settle down,” Dr. Cook says over everyone. “Ms. Kincaid, I thank you for your time. Next question.”

Shana starts to say something, but Mrs. Murray comes up behind her and whispers in her ear. Shana’s clearly frustrated, but she lets Mrs. Murray lead her to a seat.

A middle-aged white woman steps to the other mic. “Hi, my name is Karen Pittman,” she says. “This is not so much a question but a comment. I currently have a tenth grader here at Midtown. This is my third child to attend this wonderful school. My oldest son graduated seven years ago, before the various initiatives were put into place. During his four years here, there were no security guards. This will probably be an unpopular comment, but I think it must be pointed out that security measures were only heightened once students were brought in from certain communities, and rightfully so.”

Aunt ’Chelle turns all the way around in her seat to look at this woman. “I wish she would. Ooh, I wish she would.”

She basically did. Everybody knows what she means.

“There have been weapons brought on campus,” Karen claims. “Gang activity. If I’m not mistaken, Officers Long and Tate recently apprehended a drug dealer on campus.”

She is so mistaken it’s funny. And gang activity? The closest thing we’ve had to a gang war was when the musical theater kids and the dance kids tried to out-flash-mob each other. Shit got real when they both did numbers from Hamilton.

“Her name just had to be Karen,” Sonny says. “Bet she puts raisins in her potato salad.” I smirk, and we cross our arms over our chests. Wakanda forever.

“Like everyone,” Karen says, but there’s so much noise from the audience. “Like everyone, I saw the videos from the incident, and I was appalled. There was no respect for authority from many of our students. They used a vulgar, violent song to taunt two gentlemen who were simply doing their jobs. A song that my son says was done by a student and specifically targets them. We cannot and should not allow our children to be exposed to such things. I personally signed a petition this morning to have that song taken offline. I encourage other parents to do the same.”