CARLSBAD — Following public outcry over a recent online video depicting a student altercation at a city park that included racial slurs, the Carlsbad Unified School District hosted a series of listening sessions as part of its efforts to address and prevent hate-motivated incidents in schools.
The district welcomed parents, students and other community members to a pair of two-hour sessions at Kelly Elementary School on March 30.
An invitation described the listening sessions as an opportunity to bring in the community “to help shape the path toward identity safety and true belonging.”
Community members expressed frustration with the district’s ability to handle such incidents at a recent school board meeting, criticism stemming from an altercation between CUSD students at Poinsettia Park.
In a video of the incident that went viral on social media, a Black girl on an electric bicycle is surrounded by a group of children who appear to block her from leaving the park, with some standing in front of and behind the bike.
Several individuals can be heard making comments seemingly intended to provoke a confrontation, including one child saying, “Just slap her.” Others use profanity, including a racial slur. At one point, another child says, “This feels really … racist right now. We’re all ganging up on a Black girl.”
When asked why she would not fight, the girl responds, “I don’t want to,” adding, “I just want to go home.” As the situation escalates, a child in front of her grabs the bike’s front basket while others move to block her path.
Near the end of the video, one member of the group slaps the girl, triggering a physical altercation before the footage cuts off.
The girl’s mother, April Amor, and other speakers at a March 11 school board meeting said the incident reflected “racism that is very much alive in this community.”
“While this behavior is absolutely unacceptable, I understand it to be the norm throughout Carlsbad Unified School District and our community,” Amor said at the school board meeting. “It’s my belief that if it weren’t for the video that has been circulating, this matter would be swept under the rug as many other incidents.”
CUSD Superintendent Andrea Norman, who holds a doctorate in education leadership, told attendees at the second listening session that the Poinsettia Park incident was not the only incident that prompted the feedback sessions.
“We always have to be looking at and reflecting on our practices and refining them because they’re moving targets,” Norman said. “We can only learn if we’re really honest, and that’s why we’re here. We’re here to listen.”
From there, a mix of parents, students and community members split into four circles of between 15 and 20 people each.
The talking circles were overseen by facilitators, ensuring everyone had a chance to speak. Organizers also asked participants to listen and learn from one another, but not to document or repeat what others said, as a way to build trust in the process.
In accordance with this request, The Coast News did not record or document specific comments shared in the groups.
Essence Sanders, a coordinator with the National Conflict Resolution Center and one of six facilitators at the session, asked attendees to speak from the heart and, in the intimate setting, to pay attention to how others in the circle were feeling as they shared.
“No one person in the circle’s opinion is more important than another’s,” Sanders said. “We really are there not to create solutions for you, but to hear what you all have to say and to share.”
As part of the “moving target” around values, Norman said sessions like these are key to ensuring community trust and helping students feel a sense of belonging.
“We can’t do it once and say we’re done,” she said. “This isn’t transactional. This isn’t a checkoff. This here is foundational. And it’s important that that message be known, that we’re not just here for a feel-good meeting. This is the beginning, and it doesn’t mean that it’s at the end of our meetings. We would like to continue the conversation with you.”
