RENWL

RuPaul Bad Role Model For Black Children During Black History Month?

You just don’t cut it, girl.  The make up and dress, perhaps?

We’ve been quietly observing the developments of the last couple of days surrounding the suspension of the three white school teachers from LA Unified School District for providing photos of O.J. Simpson, Dennis Rodman and RuPaul to their students at Wadsworth Avenue Elementary School. They gave the students photos of Simpson, Rodman and RuPaul among other black notables including MLK and president Obama to carry with them as they marched in a school parade celebrating black history month.

When first learning of the news we immediately understood why the teachers would be suspended for handing out photos of O.J. Simpson—-he’s a criminal and currently in jail serving time for his violent transgressions.  We’re still kinda’ puzzled about Dennis Rodman—although Rodman was definitely the Madonna of the NBA when it came to stirring up controversy and getting his name in the press; if  his crime is using sexuality any way and any how to get his name and mug in the papers then okay—the teachers deserve the smackdown on that one, too.

But Ru Paul? Just like that? Deemed unacceptable and inappropriate to be celebrated by black children without a smidge of clarification as to why?  Yea, we figure these teachers were more than likely being a–holes in terms of intention. But still, we have to beg the question.

We’ve been staving off from opinion on the matter as black leadership in Los Angeles including the presidents of the local chapters of both the NAACP and the Urban League have condemned the teachers actions calling for the immediate termination of all three educators. We find their position more than appropriate—when it comes to the photos of O.J. Simpson and Dennis Rodman, that is.

Today we read the mayor’s thrown his two cents in on it expressing shock and outrage—yea, right. Look, we wanna know what others think. That’s right—time for poll.  Do you think that its straight up homophobia for deeming Ru Paul inappropriate to be acknowledged by black school children during Black History Month?

And as food for thought we’re gonna throw this in—do you think parents of Polish descent would react the same way if their children were given photos of Liberace by black teachers?  We know, queeny as he was he never wore a dress.  But that’s the best we can come up with—wait. Here’s another: Boy George—do you think British parents would react similarly if their school age children were handed out photos of Boy George on some national ethnic holiday? Perhaps you can come up with better analogies.  We’re just throwing these out there for argument sake. The poll is going to be in our sidebar here on the blog.  We’ll twitter it, too.