A dispute over Pulitzer Prize-winning play Fences has led to the expulsion of a Black student in North Carolina, according to The New York Times.
Faith Fox told the newspaper that her son, 14-year-old Jamel, had been expelled from Providence Day School in Charlotte, North Carolina after she raised an issue with a group of teachers over their decision to use August Wilson's play during a lesson.
Fox was disturbed by the idea of affluent white students studying a play that has "n****r" in it, believing it to be too mature. She also told The New York Times that it may give the class a bad impression of Black families. Of Providence Day School's 1,780 students, only 7% are Black and 70% are white.
“You can have the important conversations about race and segregation without destroying the confidence and self-esteem of your Black students and the Black population,” Fox said.
Fences won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 1987 Tony Award for Best Play, becoming one of Wilson's most well-regarded works. It was turned into a beloved film of the same name starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis.
The dispute started in November when the school sent out a letter to parents about the plan to study Fences and how the school would handle the use of the n-word, according to emails reviewed by The New York Times.
In the email about it, they included a link to a PBS video discussing the n-word by Black Harvard professor Randall Kennedy.
Fox took issue with the PBS video and complained that Kennedy used the n-word.
Her son said he was also worried about how the lessons around Fences would turn out because he doesn't like hearing the word in that context.
“It’s really awkward being in a classroom of majority-white students when those words come up because they just look at you and laugh at you, talk about you as soon as you leave class. I can’t really do anything because I’m usually the only Black person there,” he told the newspaper.
The school gave Fox an alternative assignment for her son due to her concerns about the play, but Fox took to a parent group on Facebook to bash the school for the video and the lesson plan.
Other parents in the Facebook group echoed her concerns and said they agreed with her complaints about the video and the handling of a play like Fences.
Energized by the group and angered by the school's actions, Fox sent an email to the school's Black director of equity and inclusion, referring to her as a “disgrace to the Black community.”
The school sent Fox a letter the day after Thanksgiving that said Jamel would not be returning to the school, calling it “a termination of enrollment.” In their letter, they accuse Fox of “bullying, harassment and racially discriminatory actions” as well as “slanderous accusations towards the school itself.” A letter from Black teachers at the school was then sent to another parent who expressed concerns about the play defending it.
In reference to Fox's last email, school spokeswoman Leigh Dyer said Fox made “multiple personal attacks against a person of color in our school administration, causing that person to feel bullied, harassed and unsafe” and that was why Jamel was expelled.
Jamel is now planning to go to public school in January, but he is still struggling to understand what happened.
“I was completely crushed. There was no, ‘Please don’t kick me out, I won’t say this, I won’t say that, my mom won’t say this, my mom won’t say that," he said.
“Instead of addressing the issue they’re trying to make me seem like an angry, ranting Black woman,” Fox said in response.
The dispute is part of a much larger conversation being had within many elite private schools in the wake of the protests this summer over police brutality and racism. After George Floyd's killing, thousands of Black people took to social media to describe the racism they faced while attending private schools.
Dozens of "Black at" Instagram pages for some of the country's most elite institutions were started featuring anonymous stories and quotes from Black students who experienced racism. Even students at Providence Day School started one.
In the wake of that, schools have sought to address demands for a more diversified curriculum by adding in more works by authors of color.
Dyer said that in 2017, Black parents demanded the school add new works to their curriculum that would address racism, and teachers proposed Fences. Dyer told The New York Times that since then, one parent has complained about the use of the text in classes.
Several Black teachers at the school, as well as other Black scholars, disagreed with the notion that schools should shy away from approaching complicated texts like Fences because of how they portray Black lives. Fences is taught in many middle and upper schools across the country, according to The New York Times.
Fox told the newspaper that she has no regrets about the email she sent and feels that the school's treatment of her was emblematic of their understanding of race. She added that the play, and the video they sent out about it, was not the right thing for that particular group of people.
“It wasn’t something that I thought was appropriate for a roomful of elite, affluent white children,” she said.
