Some people were all on my case about something I wrote for Slog, The Stranger‘s blog, concerning a Chinese girl found wandering the streets of Vancouver, BC, two weeks ago with a blond doll. I was thought cold for taking too much notice of the racial difference between the girl and her doll. But in my world, race is still a real and hard fact. It is not something that I have a theoretical or intellectual distance from. It is immediate. It is there all of the time.
For example, just last week, my daughter—who is 8 and happens to be the only brown person in her Accelerated Progress Program class at Thurgood Marshall Elementary—was ordered out of the classroom because her teacher did not like the smell of her hair. The teacher complained that my racially different daughter’s hair (or something—a product—in the hair) was making her sick, and then the teacher made her leave the classroom. My daughter was aware of the racial nature of this expulsion not only because she was made to sit in a classroom that had more black students in it (the implication being that this is where she really belongs, in the lower class with the other black students), but because her teacher, she informed me, owns a dog. Meaning, a dog’s hair gives the teacher less problems than my daughter’s human but curly hair. Most white people do not have to deal with shit like this. Shit that if not checked and confronted will have permanent consequences for the child.
Over the weekend, KIRO-TV ran a story on its evening newscast about the situation. The news segment showed the hair product that my daughter used, Olive Oil Moisturizing Hair Lotion, and brief interviews with her mother and lawyer. The lawyer smelled the hair product and claimed it was harmless; her mother expressed distress about the whole situation. The story wrapped up with a reporter standing outside of my daughter’s school in the Central District, explaining that he could not get a response from the teacher or the school’s principal because the school was closed for the long weekend. That was all you learned from the KIRO story.
What was significantly missing from this report is that my daughter is black American (the only black student in that teacher’s class) and the teacher who forced her out of the classroom is white American. The reason why this racial dimension was not exposed or addressed in the KIRO report is understandable: My daughter and her teacher were not interviewed. But my wife was interviewed—and she is white. So it follows that viewers would assume that her daughter is also white. But if the public had seen that the little girl has brown skin and curly hair, and her teacher has white skin and straight hair, then it would have been impossible to exclude race from this story.
If a white teacher—a person who is supposed to have a certain amount of education and knowledge of American history, and who teaches at a school named after the man who successfully argued before the court in Brown v. Board of Education for equal opportunities for racial minorities in public schools and went on to become the first African-American Supreme Court justice—removes a black student from a predominantly white class because of her hair, it is almost impossible not read the action as either racist or expressive of racial insensitivity, which amounts to the same thing for someone in that teacher’s position.
When we, her parents, were later informed of this incident, we also learned that once my daughter was removed from the class, the teacher felt much better. We were also told that the teacher had experienced something like a fainting spell because of our daughter’s hair. Feeling the seriousness of this situation, we decided not to send our daughter to school until the teacher had medical proof that our daughter’s hair or something in her hair was to blame for the nausea. (The last thing you want to happen to your daughter is for a teacher to faint or vomit at the mere sight of her.)
Days passed and the school took no action. This unresponsiveness left us with no other choice than to turn to a lawyer. The whole thing is a mess. Getting entangled in a racial dilemma is something most black parents do not want for their children. It’s just not worth the trouble. Then again, like I said, if not checked and confronted, the incident will have permanent consequences for my child.
So, yes, I have a very good reason to be sensitive to the image of a Chinese girl carrying a blond doll. Not to have that kind of sensitivity would in my case be a form of parental neglect.
Seattle Public Schools declined an interview request from Charles Mudede because he is the father of the student in question, but a school-district spokesperson agreed to be interviewed by The Stranger‘s news editor, Dominic Holden, just as this issue was going to press. Click here to read their response. 
And I always thought that Mudede was simply a pseudonym behind which the incredibly stupid editors of the Stranger hid their worst efforts.
I continue to be astonished by the general stupidity reflected in the comments on this story.
Of course the comments about race and intelligence are stupid and ill-informed, but we must presume that they are intended to incite anger and it is difficult to believe that they represent anyone’s actual understanding.
Then there are those who write things like this:
“this was VERY unprofessional behavior for a teacher!” @326. This person wasn’t there and has absolutely no idea what the teacher’s behavior was like, yet doesn’t hesitate to have an opinion about it. What’s that about? They have read to much into this and are allowing their imagination to get the better of them. The inability to discern between fantasy and reality in these people is deeply disturbing.
There are those who persist in believing that the teacher’s problem was with a smell rather than a chemical. They have read too little about this and reflects a sort of willful ignorance that is beneath contempt.
Finally, there are those who think that someone with allergies should not take a job as a teacher. These folks clearly didn’t note that the vast majority of the time the allergies do not pose this sort of problem. And really, if Mr. Mudede’s family would just not use this hair product it would not be a problem this time.
There are only three real issues here and no one seems interested in addressing them:
1) When and how should the parents have been contacted about the events of the first day and when and how should the parents have been contacted about the events of the second day. And when and how were the parents contacted. Mr. Mudede has been vague about this point.
2) Were the teachers (there were two involved) mindful of the girl’s feelings when the girl was temporarily moved to the other classroom? They are responsible for their words and actions, not for the girl’s reaction to the decision. We don’t know what the teachers’ words and actions were like. Mr. Mudede has been silent about this point.
3) Does an allergic reaction to a chemical in a cosmetic constitute cultural insensitivity? I think all thinking people can agree that it does not, but this is Mr. Mudede’s charge. He regards the teacher’s allergic reaction to a chemical in the hair product as indisputable evidence of the most literal insensitivity to his – and his daughter’s – culture. She literally could not tolerate the chemical, the chemical is in a product intended for use by people with African hair, therefore she can’t tolerate Africans. This line of reasoning is absurd and does not stand up under any kind of examination. Mr. Mudede’s response to this critique of his reasoning was “Fuck You”. Well, it is hard to argue with that.
In short, unless you were there – and Mr. Mudede wasn’t – or you want to ponder the real issues listed above – and Mr. Mudede certainly doesn’t – you really don’t have much to add to this discussion.
@ jennifaOjenny@citygal:
You ignorant, separatist heffers! Thank God you don’t speak for black women in general. I have two black parents, and I married a black man (could have easily fallen in love with a white man also, but I didn’t) we have two children. My momma was from the school of relaxers. I didn’t grow up braiding my hair, and didn’t know what I was doing when I had my daughter. My “white” friend, who happened to fall in love with and marry a black man, had 4 beautiful children. She had the audacity to believe that if she was going to take care of their hair properly, she should learn how. She studied, and practiced, not because she didn’t want to take them to “black salons”, but because she thought that as their mother, she would be more then capable of learning. And she did. She braids protective styles better then the majority of my “black” friends. She taught ME how to take care of my BLACK children’s hair. If you want to stay in your carefully built box of walls, skin color and crackerjack judgements about the real reason two human beings fall in love and get married, (no pun intended) do so, but keep “black women” as a rule out of it. No where did it say that this woman did not care for her daughters hair properly. The product in question is WIDELY used in the black community, and I’m sure she’s just as concerned with her daughters education as you are, you insufferable bitches.
@ Happy Time:
That’s why I think a general notice to ALL parents about her allergy to perfumes would have been the best course of action.
Apparently, the teacher sent the following e-mail to all parents:
Dear Parents,
With Spring upon us, allergies are in full bloom! I, unfortunately, suffer from allergies all year long. I am allergic to perfume – including perfume which may be found in lotion, hair products, even flowers! As a result of perfume exposure I get blurry vision, headache, trouble breathing, which results in my not being as sharp as I should be as well as uncomfortable. I cannot be an effective teacher for your children under these circumstances. Your child may or may not have mentioned I was out yesterday due to a severe reaction to perfume. So, a reminder: please refrain from any form of perfume if you are dealing with the class, including field trips. If you show up with perfume, one of us will have to leave!
Thanks again for your continuing support.
Yours in allergies,
[name redacted]
(Copied and pasted from the comments on this post on the “Save Seattle Schools” blog)
Whether or not the race of Mr. Mudede’s daughter had some influence on the way the teacher handled this incident — and we really have no way of knowing — it seems pretty indisputable that the teacher did have genuine allergies and made an effort to notify parents of her needs.
If you read the saveseattleschools thread carefully, it says that the letter quoted above was from some years ago, not one that was sent out this year (though it’s fair to assume that something similar was sent this year). As I’ve stated several times on this thread, it’s possible and even likely that the teacher had a reaction to something in the vicinity. But how did she know what? It’s not as if there was any shortage of options.
Does an allergic reaction to a chemical in a cosmetic constitute cultural insensitivity? I think all thinking people can agree that it does not
I think all thinking people ought to be able to see that it is perfectly possible for racial or cultural insensitivity to exist alongside any physical condition whatsoever. There’s nothing preventing this story from being about BOTH culture and chemicals.
Mr. Mudede,
Remember that the one constant in all the “racist” interactions you’ve had in your life… is you.
Please consider the likelihood that some of the incidents of racist injustice you believe you’ve suffered were in fact your own racial prejudices projected onto your perceived oppressors. It will be helpful during this exercise to disabuse yourself of the common misconception that racial prejudice is an ill suffered solely by blacks, that it is practiced predominantly and ubiquitously by whites, and that whites are immune from experiencing it.
It’s apparent from your own telling of this story that all your conclusions are based solely on the color of the teacher’s skin and not the content of her character. Take a look, take a long look, at yourself and ask, “How am I different from the racists I hate?”
When you attain colorblindness I’ll listen to your wisdom about the folly of our prejudices. In the meantime, I applaud your efforts to improve yourself.
I use that exact hair product, and others from the line. And I have never noticed a strong smell, much less an “odor”. May I also add that I am white. I can’t help but wonder if a white child in that class room using that hair product would have made the teacher ill.
Chanell#359 said, “You ignorant, separatist heffers!” and “insufferable bitches.”
Wow. Did you even get my point?
All sorts of people from all kinds of races and mixes of races can have “curly hair of a certain texture that needs certain products to control it.”
If saying that makes me an ignorant, separatist insufferable (did you mean to say “heifer?”)-bitch, … oh well. At least I’m not you.
Jessican #353,
Wouldn’t the easy way for Muldede to find out if that was the case would be to send her to school without the product and see if she was still treated the same way?
No, it’s easier to cry race card and write and article to promote himself.
If this is a commentary, fine. But if this is supposed to be a news story, I’d feel a lot better if it were being reported by a person who is one of the principals of the story. This is like asking George Bush to write a news story about U.S.-sanctioned torture of prisoners. Bad news. One-sided reporting.
@366, I think you meant “ISN’T” a principal of th story. And yes, Seattle IS racist. I cannot find the Asian-American Academy, the Latin-American Academy, the Indian-American Academy, the Russian American Academy, the Native-American Academy, the European-American Academy, the Chinese-American Academy, the Meso-American Academy etc. But the African-American Academy is up on Beacon Hill. Racism is as racism does.
I guess you think the Seattle Girls School is horrifically sexist, then? (And just by the by, the African American Academy is no more.)
This incident is not race motivated. The teacher did not handle the situation well, nor did the parent. Mr. Mudede, it’s not because your child’s hair stinks, the teacher is allergic to the scent. Something in the oil is making her physically ill. The hair product may not be a strong scent to alot of people, but to her and other people who are hypersensitive, just being in the same room with the irritant can lead to anaphylactic shock, which is life threatening. Some people carry epi-pens in case their heart stops during an severe allergic episode. Being stabbed with a syringe full of epinephrene is rather painful too. You cannot tell me you cannot find anything else that can mosturize your little girl’s hair. Unscented and natural. Though, if the teachers’ allergies to perfume/scented products is that bad, why hasn’t she gone for allergy shots? Allergy medications? Or a mixature of both? Doesn’t she have health insurance? It must suck to be her, she can’t go anywhere or live a normal life, if she can’t stand strong scents. Honestly, I feel bad for your child, but if you recieved a call from the teacher about your child’s hair, you would have spinned it into something that it’s not, which you are doing right now.
its funny to me how every time there is anything to do with black people that its automatically racist when the fact of the matter is that you are the racist so clean your daughters hair and and welcome to America 2010 were people like you keep the racism alive. just clean the stank out of the hair and take responsibility for your self. you dropped the ball and on that day you sent your daughter to the school with some over due for a shower hair and it gaged the teacher. guess what, it has happened to me as well and i have came close to throwing up and it wasn’t so much the hair but the combo of unshowered body oder and dirty hair (is a bad combo) but of course its racist because if it wasent than you would have to admit that you were a lazy parent…i feel sorry for you…
I would like people to admit to the upgrade aspect of marrying white. Though it is not true whites are less likely to have poor credit, criminal history or more likely to raise better children, it is certainly perceived that way in society and so technically you married into the very white privilege you get paid to enviscerate. This is an issue to you because you get paid to be a persecuted black man, but your daughter does not have to be weighed down with the burden of being black when she is not. The real issue is that you married a white woman who can’t do her daughter’s hair properly and all of this could have been avoided if you took your daughter to a salon in the black part of town to get her hair braided.
Wow! she doesn’t have to be weighed down with the ‘burden’ of being black?!?! is complete ignorance!!!! have you never heard of the KKK? or skinheads? They don’t care if there is only 1% in you thats non-white most will want NOTHING to do with you
And you sound VERY racist about your comment that because she’s white she can’t do her daughters hair I’ve seen white women who have adopted all black children and can braid cornrows and many other beautiful styles and probably do a better job then you
Everyone on this thread needs to familiarize themselves with the work of Tim Wise. Discrimination is not always obvious; it comes in mnany forms. I don’t usually recommend people engage in comments on web stories, due to the lack of intelligent discourse, including ad hominem attacks. However, you’ve done a nice job of clarifying the argument Charles.
Why is it everytime a black person says they are discriminated against some non-black person (usually white b/c most other races know better) chimes in with “No you haven’t — It’s all in your head!” That is BULLSHIT. Why can’t ya’ll just shut the F-up? Nobody cares about what you have to say except ignorant people that are just like you! Ya’ll don’t know and ya’ll will NEVER know what it’s like to face BS like this blog describes everyday of you freaking life. You actually think we want to live our lives thinking things that aren’t true?! Anyone non-black person who’s got something to say about wrongs WE suffer ON THE REG-U-LAR can blow me!
I think Mr. Mudede handled this situation with class and because of this his daughter will always know her worth as a human-being.
The teacher absolutely did not behave appropriately in this situation. Regardless if this was the first time the child used this product or the tenth time it was used has no bearing on the teacher’s actions. The teacher could have opened a window to get better circulation in the room. Consider this, what if the smell that was making the teacher sick wasn’t a hair product. What if it was a child’s body odor? Would she have kicked that child out and caused him embarssment too? I seriously doubt it, then again, if she doesn’t have any tact she might have. How did the teacher narrow down the smell? Did she walk from child to child taking a whiff untill she felt dizzy?
I agree people have different levels of sensitivity when it comes to smells. I know I do. I too am a teacher and I have students who live in a home where the family incessantly smokes cigerettes. The child, therefore, smells like smoke. I cannot stand it. It makes me weak, however I would not dare kick the child out of my classroom. One year (the ENTIRE year) I taught a child who smelled as if he slept, rolled, and bathed in cat urine (you know THAT distinctive smell), but I dared not kick him out of class. That’s insane! I held my breath and taught him like I would anyother child.
The way a child smells… the way anyone smells cannot be controlled. As teachers, dealing with such things is just part of the business.
Imagine if that teacher were told she couldn’t come to work because her hair smelled like wet dog… or if she reaked of garlic because she takes garlic supplements… then what kind of conversation would we be having?
she was made to sit in a classroom that had more black students in it (the implication being that this is where she really belongs, in the lower class with the other black students- see this sounds alittle fishy to me, your own words. I dont like alot of scents either maybe it was a combination of things and the teacher should have not put her out but sent a note home with regards to allergies or something. I am black and my childrens father is asian, they have very dark thick hair but I dont douse them with product. Some people dont like the smell, not to sound like you but maybe your white wife should take it easy on the products, it’s not that serious her main concern should be keeping her hair clean and not playing “fun with my half black baby” at the color people section in walmart, seriously no offense but the schools have better things to concern themselves with I mean you did say the black kids were “lower class”