Ignorant of challenges facing Black students

I read the article in The Baltimore Sun on the concerns of Black students and alumnae of The Catholic High School (“Baltimore-area high schools proclaim ‘Black Lives Matter,’ but Black alumni, students say actions don’t match those words,” June 30).

I was taken aback to read the following statement from a school representative: “It should be noted that The Catholic High School of Baltimore provides 70% of tuition assistance to 30% of its students, most of whom are students of color. This is but one example of the school’s commitment and desire to attract and welcome a diverse student population.”

No matter the intent, the statement is nonresponsive to the concerns and experiences of the Black students. It is about the “benevolence” of The Catholic High School to black students.

It does not even acknowledge the pain. It is self-centered. It is not loving and not Christlike.

It is insulting.

It is in the same category as the question to the Black student who complained about white classmates using the N-word asking if “it was spelled with an “a” or “er?”

It explains all the rage that the students and alumnae are expressing at this time. In other words, it shows that even now they don’t “get it.”

I pray they will get deep sensitivity training for all of their staff on what it is like to grow up Black in the United States of America.

It will allow them to understand that the rage that is currently being expressed in light of George Floyd’s murder is a rage that is always just beneath the surface, and it will help them to understand why that rage is there.

In that understanding, hopefully, they will be able to relate to the Black students with deep respect and Christlike empathy.

Evelyn Cannon, Baltimore