Nevada high school students dragged a black mannequin by a rope and stomped on the doll, reportedly trying to pass it off as their opposing team’s mascot.
School officials at Reno-area Damonte Ranch High School did not approve use of the mannequin at Friday’s homecoming halftime show, Washoe County School District officials said in a statement posted on its website.
The district launched an investigation the same night the incident occurred, according to the statement.
“This incident and the behavior of those responsible is utterly inconsistent with our collective commitment to equity, diversity, responsibility, and kindness for all of our students and staff members,” the district said.
The original plan was for students to buy a blow up cowboy and horse and lasso a student dressed as Robert McQueen High School’s Lancer Knight, according to a school incident report obtained by the Reno Gazette Journal.
The Damonte Ranch school said in the report, “it was later decided to purchase a blow up mannequin instead of dressing up a student” and to use paper to show it’s armor, shield, helmet and sword.
When the unidentified person making the purchase couldn’t find a gray mannequin on Amazon, students used a black one instead, according to the report.
“The Blow up ‘Lancer Knight’ was lassoed around the waist and was to be standing on the float during the float parade,” the school said in the report. “According to the [redacted], they couldn’t keep the mannequin standing on the float and that’s why it ended up being dragged behind the student dressed in the blow up cowboy/horse.”
Lonnie Feemster, president of the Reno-Sparks NAACP, spoke out about the incident in the New York Post Monday.
“It is troubling that children are so poorly educated that they did not immediately know that the hanging of a black doll is hurtful and frightening,” he said.
School officials admitted in its report that the staff should have “recognized how this could offend others” and removed the mannequin from the parade.
“I cannot begin to express how incredibly sorry we are that this took place during the Homecoming Float Parade,” officials said in the report. “We would never intentionally try to offend any culture as we represent diverse cultures in our Damonte Ranch High School and community.”
They called it “a valuable learning experience and lifelong lesson for our Damonte Ranch students and staff.”
“Again, we are deeply sorry and will take action and necessary steps to ensure that this never repeats itself at Damonte Ranch High School,” the school said in its report.
