Ryan Clarke of The Newberg Graphic, a local paper in Newberg, Oregon, reported a story about a staff member at Mabel Rush Elementary School who decided to protest the school’s vaccine mandate.
By dressing as Rosa Parks.
Which included doing blackface.
Um.
Okay…?
Clarke was able to get additional information from another staff member who revealed that the, and I can’t believe I’m writing this, blackface Rosa Parks anti-vaxxer was a special education assistant named Lauren Pefferle. “The concerned staff member, who requested anonymity for this story, said Pefferle explained that she intended to look like Rosa Parks and have her actions serve as a protest of a mandate requiring school district employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Pefferle was soon removed from school grounds and placed on administrative leave, according to a district statement.”
The statement from the school can be seen in Clarke’s tweet about the story.
BREAKING: A staff member at Mabel Rush elementary school in Newberg showed up to work in Blackface on Friday, allegedly saying she was dressed as Rosa Parks and protesting a vaccine mandate for teachers.
Statement from @NewbergSchools on the latest racist incident: pic.twitter.com/J1HHc2X9wl
— Ryan Clarke (@RyanTClarke) September 20, 2021
I’m trying to think of a way to convey how I feel about all of this, but I gotta admit, it’s difficult to pick a starting point. This is one of those stories that goes from being completely absurd to being kinda depressing when you realize that yes, there are people out there who believe that the fight for racial equality is the same as not getting a vaccine, so much so that they do something outrageously racist to get their point across, I guess?!
I have seen MULTIPLE posts from people comparing..SEGREGATION to Vaccination and I KNOW it’s because we didn’t talk about Segregation in schools so folks don’t even understand what they doing.
— Detective Alex Foley (@BellBobbybell6) September 20, 2021
I’m sorry a staff member showed up to work in Blackface saying she was who doing what now https://t.co/JMMMhwsxE0
— 🍂🍂Imani Gandied Apples🍁🍁 (@AngryBlackLady) September 20, 2021
The dick of the day trophy goes to Lauren Pefferle, a grade school staff member in Newberg, Oregon who showed up to work in Blackface, claiming she was dressed as Rosa Parks, to protest vaccines that are SAVING LIVES.
Racism and pro-Covid death in one move. #DickOfTheDay 🏆
— Jason Overstreet (@JasonOverstreet) September 20, 2021
Then you get to the part where, apparently, this is just one of several racially charged incidents in the school district.
The Blackface incident comes amid a string of news-making incidents in the school district related to race and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Last week, a Newberg High School student was connected to a racist ‘slave trade’ Snapchat group, resulting in a student-led protest during a sporting event in solidarity with Newberg’s Black students; and a controversial decision by the school board has led to a months-long battle to ban Black Lives Matter flags, Pride displays and other perceived “political” symbols.
Please understand that the following gif react is the only way my brain can process all of this. I truly am just a tired Black woman today.
Because it’s one thing to see a story about a blackface anti-vaxx Rosa Parks cosplayer.
If you would’ve asked Rosa Parks to wear a mask, socially distance, vaccinate and generally not partipate in f*ckery for the good of her community she would’ve done it.
But yeah staff member, equate you having to vaccinate and use doordash to racism.
— disguyyy (@writerhaha) September 20, 2021
But to see that combined with the knowledge of this being a school district with such gems as “student participates in racist slave trade Snapchat group” and “folks are trying to ban BLM and Pride flags” makes it even more exhausting. It implies that this staff member probably thought they were in the right, not just because of the misguided comparison to segregation and vaccination, but because they work in a school district with ongoing racist incidents.
Not to mention the constant attempts to ban our history.
So, we can’t teach about the actual oppression Rosa Parks and Black folks have faced, but it’s OK to wear blackface to compare yourself to Parks bc you’re resisting a COVID vaccine.
Make the silly white people stop please… https://t.co/qv5O0y50Tk
— Tim Wise (@timjacobwise) September 20, 2021
Clarke goes in to quote Tai Harden-Moore, a Black woman and former candidate for school board who has children in the school district. “This makes sense only because we have our county commissioner, Mary Starrett, who drew that line between vaccine mandates and Jim Crow,” Harden-Moore said. “That was only a couple months ago. Our county leadership is saying basic public health measures are akin to Jim Crow. There is a line between our political leadership and something like this happening. Our leadership matters.”
Superintendent Joe Morelock added, “I am horrified, angry, and ashamed this has happened, as is nearly every other staff member. This goes against everything I and the vast majority of NSD staff have believed and it is unfathomably offensive.”
I expected pushback against the vaccine, so much so that anti-vaxxers think they’re taking some kind of heroic stand against it, and I have mental guards at the ready for potential bursts of racism ranging from outlandish to Karen, but a combination of the two with a bonus upgrade of blackface is… a lot to take in.
I don’t know who needs to hear this, but… don’t protest vaccine rules (or anything else, really) by wearing blackface to work. https://t.co/naJTtpR1tO
— Parker Molloy (@ParkerMolloy) September 20, 2021
That.
Exactly that.
And I will always feel some kinda way knowing that someone actually does need to hear that.
(via Ryan Clarke of The Newberg Graphic, image: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images)
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