Racist re-enactment of George Floyd’s murder leaves Oakland high schoolers outraged
OAKLAND — Racist images depicting a re-enactment of the murder of George Floyd on the campus of an East Oakland private Catholic school have been circulated widely by students in recent weeks, prompting officials to investigate.
The photographs, taken at least a month ago, depict a Bishop O’Dowd High School sophomore kneeling on the neck of a classmate in the same manner that Floyd was killed by police in 2020, leading to the largest civil-rights protests in U.S. history.
A separate selfie photo, where the same student flashes a thumbs-up at the camera, is captioned with emojis of a monkey, orangutan and gorilla — imagery associated with racism toward Black people.
Screenshots of the images were shared with this news organization by students of Bishop O’Dowd, a prep school nestled in deep East Oakland that costs about $24,000 in yearly tuition and is known for its athletics.
In a memo sent Wednesday to the campus community, school officials said the incident took place on the campus quad, and that the student whose neck is knelt upon in the photos was asleep at the time.
The school promised a swift investigation to “ensure that the responsible students are appropriately disciplined according to our handbook.”
On Friday, the office of school Principal Doug Evans did not provide the enrollment status of the kneeling student or confirm whether he had faced discipline.
In addition to addressing 10th graders at a school mass, Bishop O’Dowd leaders also held a lunchtime assembly on Thursday inviting students to “share the harm they have experienced, the impact on our community, and to find ways to begin healing and move forward together.”
Still, students who wished to remain anonymous said in interviews they were frustrated with the school’s messaging. While the official campus newsletter described the material as an “egregious racial offense,” it also spent part of its initial paragraphs reprimanding those who shared the images online.
“Yesterday, a student chose to post the photo on social media, rather than bringing the issue to any administrators or trusted adults, causing major harm in our community and deeply hurting many of our students,” the newsletter states.
“Beyond the racial offense, this incident brings to the forefront many nuanced and important issues: social media use, appropriately reporting incidents, and respect between students,” it continues.
The students, in interviews, said Bishop O’Dowd’s leaders appeared more concerned about the images getting out to the public and tainting the school’s reputation among its tuition-paying families than it did about the incident itself.
The principal’s office did not respond to questions about the students’ frustrations, saying the Wednesday memo would be the “extent of the public information released on the matter.”
Snapchat and Instagram posts re-sharing the kneeling photo expressed alarm and outrage about its depiction of the violence that three years ago sparked a national reckoning over how Black people in the U.S. are treated.
“i want everyone to know how disgusting and horrible this photo is, and that someone thinks it’s funny to do on our own campus,” reads one caption.
“O’Dowd students do not tolerate this blatant and disgusting act of disrespect!!” declares another. “George Floyd’s death is not made to be a mockery.”
About 49% of the school’s roughly 1,200 students are white, 21% are Black, 14% are Asian and 12% are Hispanic or Latino, according to U.S. News and World Report.
Another image shared by the students appears to contain an apology from the student to “the people I have offended with the photo I participated in.”
“I was pressured into taking the photo and I take full responsibility,” reads the statement. “And I should’ve known better. we are taught these things aren’t ok and I am truly sorry.”