We don’t feel safe here: Hillcrest High School pupil
Durban — KZN Education MEC Mbali Frazer has commissioned a week-long commission of inquiry into racism and sexism allegations at Hillcrest High School.
This was after pupils poured their hearts out to Frazer about incidents of racism, sexism, bullying and body shaming in the school on Thursday.
The MEC had visited the school after media reports about a leaked WhatsApp group chat between school boys who used derogatory language, racial slurs, the K-word, and the N-word.
The meeting was supposed to be between Frazer and the school management, but things took a sharp turn when a group of pupils of the school tabled the issues they were facing, which they said were being swept under the carpet to protect the reputation of the school.
The said chats were leaked last year, and the school conducted a disciplinary hearing for the five white boys in question this year in June.
One of the learners who spoke said they were not happy with how the school handled the matter. The learner said there was a peaceful protest, which was to say they were not happy about the manner in which the matter was handled. However, it was ridiculed by the school management.
The learner said only one boy apologised on behalf of the others, and he only did that because he was forced.
“Among the problems we have is racism, sexism, bullying and body shaming. We do not feel safe in this school,” said the pupil.
Pupils told the MEC that some white learners in the school did not face punishment and their cases were often not dealt with.
The learner recalled an incident where laptops and cellphones were stolen, and said the suspects in the school were black pupils, but not white pupils.
Another learner described how their protest was ridiculed by the school, and said one of the teachers asked them where were the tyres to burn.
“I came into this school because I love it, but now I wish I had not. What you see outside is not what you get inside, we were sold dreams. The school’s reputation matters the most,” she said.
The other learner said there were educators who were not happy about what was happening at the school, but some of them were black and they were probably scared to speak out.
A parent said her child was in Grade 10 at the school and she had experienced bullying. However, the way in which the school dealt with the case was not satisfying as it was swept under the carpet.
“The school is ready to pull out the code of conduct with certain learners, and then hide it where other students are concerned. Why did they not pull out the code of conduct when this case happened?,” she asked.
A relative of another pupil, who has a sibling who goes to the school, said her sister, who is in Grade 10, was still traumatised after a group of boys chased her and called her derogatory words.
“She was bullied by white people and nothing happened. The school called a meeting and they did not invite our mother, she sent an email to say her child cannot be in a meeting without her. There was no further action from the school.”
Congress of South African Students (Cosas) deputy chairperson in KZN, Lwazi Nhlumayo, said there must be no teachers or environments to groom and enable racists. He said there was a need for criminal cases to be opened.
Frazer said the department would hold a week-long commission of inquiry into racism and sexism at the school, and all parties involved would be a part of it.
“Section 9 of the Constitution prohibits all forms of discrimination. We have listened to the learners who wanted to talk to us, unfortunately, our meeting was with the stakeholders, however when the learners wanted to talk we had to give them a chance.
“The meeting we initially came here for will take place after the commission of inquiry,” said Frazer.
Daily News