City leaders condemn racist graffiti
NAACP president: Vandalism echoes Hub’s past troubles
Racist graffiti found spray-painted on a Southie school Wednesday raises the spectre of the city’s troubled past, said the head of the Boston NAACP. “Situations like this bring great outrage, but they aren’t new,” said NAACP Boston president Tanisha Sullivan. “People may think, ‘It’s 2018, how is this happening’ but it is important to remember with a historic lens that this type of racism has happened before with our school community, especially in South Boston.” Wednesday, racial slurs appeared on Joseph P. Tynan Elementary School structures. Boston police are investigating. Yesterday, city leaders went to the site and condemned the hateful act. “It’s a community coming together to make sure the students feel supported after this despicable incident in a place where they should feel loved and supported and safe all the time,” said City Councilor Michelle Wu. “So many of us think about instances of hate around the country and it can feel overwhelming to be in the moment in a political system where people feel empowered to act on their worse impulses,” Wu said. “And this news brings it so close to home and makes us realize that we all have a role to play to make sure that our spaces in Boston are free from hate.” Three decades ago, the black community experienced racial separation, most notable by the busing incidents of that time. “The relationship with BPS and the black communities hasn’t always been positive,” Sullivan said. Sullivan said this is a perfect example that shows while progress has been made, there is still a long way to go. “Situations like this give an overt reminder to all of us, what some of us experience everyday. For many, this is a reality that they have to live with every day and it isn’t always as overt as graffiti on the side of a school.” “Our initial reaction needs to be to support the school and support the neighbors in the community that are horrified by this,” City Councilor Annissa Essaibi-George said. “We need to get them the services to deal with it and make sure we aren’t overwhelming the kids.” “We need to be careful and mindful of our presence because we are strangers coming into their community and that can be a lot for the children,” Essaibi-George said. The city council will work on ways to make schools safer, such as with surveillance and security, as well as internal work. “We need to make sure our schools tell our kids that they are loved and cherished and that no matter what race or ethnicity or religion you are, you are welcomed,” Essaibi-George said, “and that needs to happen across the district.”