California student suspended for wearing black face paint at football game
November 4, 2023
By JOSH FRIEDMAN
A middle school in California suspended a student last month for wearing black face paint at a football game, something that constituted a “hate incident,” according to a suspension notice issued by the school’s principal.
Muirlands Middle School Principal Jeff Luna also banned the eighth grade student from attending San Diego Unified School District sporting events for the remainder of the year for what he claims was blackface, the student’s father told CalCoastNews. A photo shows the boy was wearing face paint similar to what some football players wear, clearly not blackface, said the father, who asked not to be named.
On Oct. 13, the student wore black face paint when he attended a game between La Jolla High School and Morse High School. Muirlands Middle School is located in La Jolla, but the eighth grader was attending the football game in his free time, not as part of a school function. He wore black face paint, in part, for a TikTok video.
“He had a fun, great night without any trouble,” the student’s father said.
While he was at the game, no one accused the student of being in blackface. A Black security guard even told him to add more face paint, the student’s father said.
But five days after the game, the father was called into the principal’s office. Principal Luna said the face paint was blackface because Morse High School has a largely Black student body, the father said.
The suspension notice
Luna issued the eighth grader a two-day suspension for violating the school’s hate incidents policy related to offensive comments and intent to harm, the suspension notice shows. The notice describes the incident merely as the student “painted his face black at a football game.”
The father said he is appealing the suspension. He does not want his son to face false accusations and deal with mistreatment from educators as he progresses through the school system, the father said.
“I will absolutely clear his name,” he said.
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