On Monday, August 10th, one of Harold L. Richards’s most supportive teachers, Ms. Othman, was harassed by community members of Oak Lawn and surrounding areas because of her hanging of a Black Lives Matter flag in her classroom. On Ms. Othman’s school Twitter, used to update students and parents about her class, Ms. Othman tweeted a picture of a Black Lives Matter flag, stating “... my background for the Zoom sessions.” After this, the tweet was spread across local community Facebook pages and Twitters in opposition to this flag, making very racist and sickening comments towards both Ms. Othman and the Black Lives Matter Movement. However, many current students, alumni, and parents of HLR took to Twitter to voice their support for Ms. Othman and the Black Lives Matter movement. However, on August 17th, the first day of school, we can see that Ms. Othman no longer has the flag hung in her room. Many community members are very upset that Ms. Othman had to take down her flag, just because racist community members told her to do so. Ms. Othman is also a Chicago History teacher, and you cannot discuss Chicago’s History without including the Black Lives Matter Movement.

District 218 has a large number of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students, and it is very important that these students feel supported and included at school. A good way to do this would be to show our support for Black Lives Matter and show that D218 will fight for its students - no matter what. It is very alarming that we have such a high number of community members not in support of the BLM Movement since many Black students attend Richards. School should offer a safe space for students, and we cannot do this without showing our unconditional support, no matter who or what race you are. 

The Richards High School Mission Statement states that the school will “foster a safe, nurturing, and equitable environment.” How can we offer a safe and equitable environment without standing up for those who need our help the most right now? The mission statement also says the school will “reflect on challenging, real-life problems in a way that inspires them to prepare for the future and contributing to our evolving world.” This is a very real, very challenging problem facing our community, and if Richard’s wanted to stand by its Mission Statement, they would stand up for their students.

Like the Mission Statement says, the world is evolving before our very eyes. There is no longer a space for neutrality, and the district must show its unwavering support for its students, no matter what. To achieve this, allow staff in D218 to voice their support for this human rights movement, and allow Ms. Othman to rehang her flag. 

** Written by Richard’s alumni and students in support of Ms. Othman. **