A high school near San Francisco is in a lot of trouble right now after students decided it would be a good idea to celebrate Black History Month with a dinner of fried chicken and watermelon. What?
As you can imagine, people got plenty offended and the principal at the private school issues an apology to students and parents. And then of course, there are people who are like but what is the big deal? Look. Black people, and all people, like fried chicken because it's just delicious. But the watermelon thing is definitely a problem. Again, watermelon is delicious, but it also has a long, nasty history when it comes to black folks. A quick Google search shows posters with black caricatures easily placated with a big, juicy watermelon. Oh, look how happy the Negroes are about working our fields for free and worse! All it takes is a little melon. So. It's problematic.
There's nothing wrong with celebrating the food of the African diaspora. But there needs to be context because a watermelon isn't just a watermelon. The school said they're going to hold a diversity assembly; let's hope it includes a history lesson, too.
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