‘Outrageous’: Black Olathe student says harassers put N-word on metal piece made in class

On May 4, Olathe South High School sophomore Kirubel Solomon was in his jewelry and metal making class when a white student handed him a flat piece of copper.

The student and two other white classmates, who Solomon says have harassed him with racial slurs for months, egged him on and told him to turn the metal piece over.

When he did, he saw the N-word and a heart engraved into it.

“I didn’t say a word,” the 16-year-old, who says he is the only Black student in that class, told The Star on Friday.

“I gave them a little smile because I knew that they just ruined it for themselves. Like at that point, I had physical evidence on them. But other than that, I was pretty pissed. I was frustrated. I couldn’t go to class for the rest of the day. I stayed in the office.”

He says he has not returned to that class since it happened. But it has inspired him to speak out about the racism and harassment he says is rampant at the high school.

His story has sparked growing outrage and calls for school officials to take stronger actions. Solomon alleges two of the students received 10 days of out-of-school suspension, while the third received a few days and has already returned to school grounds.

School officials have declined to provide details of the discipline, though they said they are aware of an unspecific incident of racism in the school and have addressed the issue.

“However, we want to be clear that in Olathe Public Schools we are committed to creating an inclusive and safe environment for ALL of our students. Racism, hate speech, or slurs of any kind are not tolerated (in) our district or at any of our schools, including Olathe South High School,” district officials said in an email to The Star.

But several students argue school officials have not done enough. A protest is planned at district headquarters Monday evening, said Olathe student David Brox, who is helping organize it and reports for the Kansas City Defender, a Black community media organization that first shared Solomon’s story.

“Think not of yourself and your personal opinions of this situation, but think from the perspective of how demoralizing it is as a Black person to live every day knowing that you doing something so simple as existing can occur to the dismay of another individual,” Brox wrote in an Instagram post to “people trying to downplay the situation.”

Solomon and several other students say they are also angry at Olathe South Principal Dale Longenecker specifically.

“I think he should be held accountable,” Solomon said. “This isn’t his first time being negligent with situations with racism or student-based issues in general.”

In an email to families, Longenecker echoed the district line that they cannot share details of the incident due to student privacy laws, but said it involved “students using a racial slur.” He said, “I want you to know that racism, hate speech or slurs of any kind are not tolerated at Olathe South.”

Longenecker said, “We will continue to work and protect our students from this type of hate speech.

“In collaboration with our district’s department of Culture & Belonging, our administrative team has developed additional training to combat these issues head on at Olathe South. We have started this work this school year and will continue these proactive efforts in the fall,” the principal said.

Solomon said of the school’s response: “I feel like it was weak. Because the school punishes harder for lesser offenses in my opinion. Like vaping. They take vaping more seriously than racism in my opinion.”

Students have also pointed to an incident less than two years ago when a photo circulated of a white Olathe South High School student asking a St. James Academy student to homecoming using a sign that read: “If I was Black I would be picking cotton but I’m white so I’m picking you for HOCO.”

The racist sign sparked widespread outrage, and many parents and students questioned the district’s handling of the incident, including the alleged punishment of a Black student who said he was there when it happened.

In his email, Longenecker said that the school acknowledges “the pain and hurt many of our students and families may be experiencing in response to this situation.”

He said next week, officials have set aside time for staff to speak with students, “address the trauma that hate speech can cause for our students and to reinforce that this behavior has not and will never be tolerated at Olathe South.”

Solomon, who says he has been in the Olathe district since preschool, said the racism he experienced is all too common. And though the publicity made him feel uncomfortable at first, he says he wants to “set an example for Black students younger and older so they feel more encouraged to speak out.”

“Olathe South is outrageous. Outrageously filled with racist problems,” Solomon said, adding: “All of the kids that are Black have dealt with their own experiences with racism at that school.”