US teacher suspended over ‘mock slave auction,’ using racial slur in class

Earlier this week, Gregory Martineau, superintendent of the public schools of Northborough and Southborough, penned a letter explaining what happened in the recurring incidents at Margaret A. Neary Elementary School in Southborough, 30 miles west of Boston. 

Although the superintendent didn’t name the US teacher in the letter, he detailed that the first January incident occurred during a lesson on the economy of the Southern colonies. The involved teacher is said to have facilitated an “impromptu” mock slave auction. Following this, another occurrence of a similar nature befell in April, when the same teacher used a racial slur while reading from a book in the class. The school district eventually realised that the book didn’t list the word. 

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Local superintendent condemns the US teacher’s actions of conducting a mock slave auction 

Disparaging the acts of the responsible teacher, Martineau wrote, “Dehumanizing words such as slurs should not be spoken by employees or students… Using such words can harm students and negatively impact an open discussion on a particular topic.”

Further condemning the “unacceptable” actions, he remarked how the incident went against all that the district stood for. Calling out the “unsound methods of teaching,” the superintendent asserted that such ways trivialised the victims’ experience and said, “Simulations or role plays when teaching about historical atrocities or trauma are not appropriate, and these teaching methods are not to be used.”

Actions taken against the responsible teacher

After Martineau came forward with the revelation that he found out about these happenings from parents on April 24, the district opened a formal investigation. The unnamed teacher was eventually put on paid leave. Additionally, Kathleen Valenti, the school’s principal, was also similarly suspended for 10 days in May. 

Although all personnel matters will remain confidential, Martineau claimed that the district is proceeding with the required procedures with the teacher who is still on leave. 

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What happened during the culpable teacher’s lessons?

The superintendent said that during the first incident that transpired in January, the official involved was teaching students about the triangle trade, discussing slave auctions. Proceeding further with the lesson, the teacher conducted a mock slave auction, asking “two children sitting in front of the room, who were of color, to stand, and the educator and class discussed physical attributes (i.e., teeth and strength).”

Contrarily, in April, the same person read out aloud an unprescribed book, enunciating the “N-word.” While the book was anyway not part of the fifth-grade curriculum, the racial slur didn’t appear on its pages either. 

Notably, the teacher later “inappropriately called out the student” who reported the use of the racial slur in the classroom. Promising improvement in the district’s “cultural competenency,” Martineau recognised that “there were missteps in this process that further complicated the situation.”