St. Louis Alumni Start Petition Addressing Systemic Racism

There's an awakening in America. The tolerance of intolerance and racial exclusion is no longer being tolerated. St. Louis Catholic High School alums Maria Harmon (2006) and Natalie Ieyoub (2009) and their fellow alumni are among those calling for systemic change. They want our local education system and Catholic Diocese to update the current curricula in the district because it is racially biased. The students are taking action and started the petition addressed to the St. Louis Catholic administration: Stop Racism and Discrimination at St. Louis Catholic High School.

The Saints alum are demanding educators end the widespread practice of systemic racism and biased policies that not only exist in the diocese, but in all of the district’s curricula. According to KPLC, the students’ original goal was to achieve 1,000 signatures. However, the petition located on change.org exceeded that number in less than two days, so they set a new goal of 1,500!

The former students of St. Louis Catholic High are calling the school district, its administration, and the Diocese of Lake Charles out on upholding outdated curricula that exclude minorities. They believe now is the time to address the history of racism in education and that learning should include a conversation about race and include diverse materials and voices.

It looks like a lot people agree with Maria and Natalie. The time has come for the Catholic Diocese curriculum and all other education institutions in the district to teach inclusion and diversity, and that should include common core courses, subjects, and books.

An excerpt of the St. Louis alumni petition reads:

We believe that as Christian educators, the teachers at St. Louis have a moral and professional responsibility to facilitate in-class conversations about race, privilege, allyship, and justice at every grade level.

 

We must put a stop to the practice of teaching students to be colorblind and acknowledge that racism is not a thing of the past, nor the sole domain of hateful individuals—racism must be understood as a system that is reinforced by institutions and is reinforced through systems of discrimination, as well as implicit and explicit biases.

Bravo! It took a lot of courage for Maira, Natalie, and their fellow alumni to take such a bold stance. I, for one, totally agree and support your cause. God bless you all. You represent the Americans we all should strive to be.