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Catholic School Board Denies Racially Profiling Black Student Wearing Durag

Months after suggesting an 11-year-old student had “gang affiliations” and calling the cops on his mom, the school board claims its conduct had nothing to do with race.
Una Momolu Edmonton Catholic Schools
Una Momolu wants an apology after she says her son was racially profiled by his school. All photos by author

Three months after accusing an 11-year-old Black boy of having gang ties because he wore a durag, Edmonton Catholic Schools will not apologize for racial profiling.

The Catholic school board claims it has apologized to former Christ the King student Emmell Summerville’s mother Una Momolu multiple times. But a close read of its most recent statement shows that the board is continuing to deny that it acted in a racist manner.

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“When we previously apologized publicly for using the word ‘gang’, we had hoped to convey to Ms. Momolu and her son that there was no intent to connect her son’s race or his choice to wear a durag with his membership in a gang; the intention was only to inform Ms. Momolu and her son of a community reality which may have put her son at risk,” says the school board’s statement which was read out loud to Momolu at a meeting with Alberta’s Education Minister Adriana LaGrange on Monday.

“We are sorry that throughout this matter, she interpreted our intentions differently and that our conduct was racially motivated; that is simply not who we are.”

Momolu said Tuesday she doesn’t consider the statement to be an apology.

The statement is the latest development in an ongoing dialogue between Momolu, 26, and the school board, after her son Summerville was instructed to remove his durag while attending Christ the King school September 12.

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Protesters gather outside the Edmonton Catholic school trustees meeting.

Summerville’s principal at the time, Phebe Switzer, reprimanded the boy for wearing an article of clothing that implies having a “gang affiliation.” In a recorded conversation between Momolu and Switzer, the principal told Momolu “there are children that age that are a part of gangs.”

That conversation ended with Switzer hitting the panic button, sparking a school-wide lockdown. The school subsequently banned Momolu from school grounds. Summerville switched schools.

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Months of mounting pressure culminated in the meeting with Momolu, school staff, and the education minister this week. The school board has partially lifted the ban on Momolu, allowing her on school grounds to pick up her other young relatives, and is reviewing its dress code policy. But Momolu remains unsatisfied with the apology she was given, arguing that it isn’t in fact an apology.

At the Catholic school trustee meeting Tuesday, she said these events have framed her as an angry Black woman—a harmful trope. “[The stereotype] ruins the way people see me in my community, at my jobsite,” Momolu, a community support worker, said at the meeting. “I’ve cried myself to sleep over this situation because I’m not aggressive, I’m not angry.”

The school board previously claimed that Momolu’s behaviour caused the principal to feel “threatened” and that video footage showed school staff “crying.” The board never produced that footage. But at no point during Momolu’s audio recording of the meeting with the principal can she be heard raising her voice.

Standing in front of seven white Catholic school trustees Tuesday, Momolu explained why she wants an apology.

“You recognized I’m not a danger by removing the ban. You recognized that durags are not gang-affiliated by reviewing your policies. The only thing that has been ignored time and time again is an apology,” Momolu said at the meeting.

She also explained why a durag is more than a headpiece.

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“To be clear, a durag is not a hat. It’s meant to protect Black hair—hair that has been criminalized because of our society,” Monolu said.

“Durags started as women—slave women—who took pieces of fabric, combined them together, because they were always told that their hair wasn’t good enough … but then used that fabric as a symbol of beauty.”

While she spoke, a crowd of allies held signs covered in supportive messages, including “Justice for Emmell,” “What would Jesus do?” and “Does my hair offend you?”

Every time a security guard stepped in to confiscate the posters, a wave of new signs appeared.

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A security guard stands outside the trustee meeting.

The Edmonton Catholic School Board said security is hired for most trustee meetings. But Momolu’s supporters repeatedly questioned why a security guard was present.

At the end of Momolu’s speech, supporters chanted “Black lives matter.” The board’s chair thanked Momolu and said the team will review her speech before issuing a response.

In a statement to VICE, Edmonton Catholic Schools spokeswoman Lori Nagy said the organization has already apologized. She did not comment when asked how the organization responds to Momolu’s view that the existing statement does not constitute an apology.

According to Nagy’s email, the board plans to work with a third-party mediator to address Momolu’s remaining concerns.

Irfan Chaudhry, director of human rights at MacEwan University in downtown Edmonton, said the school board’s actions are bizarre.

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“It seems the board only wishes to apologize for the use of the word ‘gang’ versus how this has impacted the family,” he said.

“I think what is being asked for… is not something the school board will commit to,” Chaudhry said. “This will force them to own up to something they have been denouncing since the start of this ordeal—that race has something to do with this.”

According to the school board, Education Minister LaGrange confirmed to Momolu that the province will explore “cultural awareness competencies” to provide a “welcoming, caring, respectful and safe learning environment that respects diversity.”

However the school board’s statement to Momolu seemed to deny there are any systemic issues at play.

“Based upon our knowledge of the staff members directly involved, we have never seen any indication of any kind over their many years of service that would indicate that they are anything but inclusive and welcoming to all students.”

Momolu said she will keep working with the school board until she and her son hear an apology.

“We want to make sure this doesn’t happen to another Black child, Indigenous child or racialized child in our schools again,” she said.

“Without recognizing that systemic racism exists in our school system, the same wrong will happen over and over again.”

—with files from Manisha Krishnan

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