Any regular reader of this site knows that I’m not one of those guys that sees racism around every corner. Drawing a Hitler mustache on an Obama photo is not racist, and neither is painting him up like the Joker. “Socialist” is not “the new ‘N-word’.”
The picture included on an 8th grade pre-algebra worksheet distributed at Central Bucks’ Lenape Middle School: Actually kind of racist. The mother, whose son is the only black kid in his class, has a right to be upset with the picture, included on the work sheet by teacher Matthew Curran.
“I couldn’t understand what I was looking at,” said the woman, whose identity the newspaper has agreed not to disclose.
It was a work sheet called “Solving Equations using Multiplication and Division!” and it featured a photo of a black man wearing a straw hat, shirt and suspenders, with his mostly toothless mouth wide open. As if to underscore the man’s stupidity, at the bottom of the picture was written, “NO WAI!!!”
The mother learned that her son, the only black student in his eighth-grade pre-algebra class at Lenape Middle School, was teased by another student when the assignment was distributed.
“One of the kids in the classroom turned around and said, ‘Is that your father?’ ” she said.
Is Curran a racist? I don’t know. You don’t need to be a hood wearing Klan member to do something stupid and insensitive. What’s clear is that this was the stupid and insensitive use of a racist image.
I’m not buying this excuse, either.
Curran reported, through Smith, that he found the image by doing a Google Images search for the phrase “multiply and divide.”
“I chose it because it said ‘no way,’ which is a comment my students make when I require them to show each calculation,” he wrote in an e-mail. “I had no idea that I might offend anyone. I am very sorry for any distress that this has caused my students and the community.”
Of course, the only way to prove you’re really, really offended by something is to bring in an outside group. This is where the mother veers off course and loses a bit of credibility.
Monday night, after meeting with the boy’s family, NAACP Bucks County President John Jordan issued a written statement denouncing the events.
“It brings into question whether all of our children are being provided a safe and fair environment in which to learn. What happened here is unacceptable, and we will take steps to make sure it never happens again.”
NAACP Bucks County Executive Committee members plan to meet with the principal and the teacher involved in the incident at Lenape Middle School “in hopes of amicably resolving the issue,” the statement went on to say.
This happened Saturday, and by Monday she’s meeting with the NAACP? Clearly there need to be repercussions at the school that probably involve firing the teacher. If this incident results in a lawsuit and monetary damages based on looking at a picture and hearing a derisive comment from a 12-year-old, it borders on becoming ridiculous.
And this is outside the realm of what’s reasonable.
She plans to keep her son home from school until she feels as though it’s safe to send him again.
The kid wasn’t attacked. He looked at an offensive thing and someone said something mean to him. The father isn’t mentioned in the story, which is why the other kid’s comment seems especially harsh. But let’s get serious. I think most of us would have been sitting on our asses at home a lot during middle school if we fled every time another 12-year-old said something mean to us. What the teacher did wasn’t cool and will likely result in his firing, and justifiably so in my opinion. But toughen up about the comment, kid. Being offended, even justifiably, isn’t the definition of an “unsafe” situation.
UPDATE: I encourage readers to read the comments to this article. Mr. Curran clearly has a lot of support from the community, and this appears to be a tragic mistake on his part. Still, mistakes have consequences. Seeing the positive impact he’s had on his past and current students, as described in the comments, I don’t know anymore whether his firing would be justified in this instance. From the facts presented by the Courier-Times, it seemed that way. But seeing the positive effect he’s had in getting the kids into learning, I’m not so sure.
ANOTHER UPDATE: I also want to thank the many students from Lenape Middle School for the comments they’ve posted here. They have been thoughtful, reasonable and articulate. My hard line came from the facts presented by the Courier-Times. I appreciate the way you presented the other side of the issue. You have done your school proud, and have changed at least one mind: Mine.
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Bucks County, NAACP, Race Relations75 Responses to “Stupid Teacher Tricks At Lenape Middle School”
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Let me start by saying that I used to work with Matt Curran during my first year as a teacher. We shared an office for an entire year and Matt was kind enough to share a great deal of advice and insight throughout that year. Matt cared more about the success of each and every student in his classes than I can say for most of the teachers in Central Bucks School District. Not only do I never once remember Matt saying anything remotely racist, but I don’t remember Matt saying anything offensive about anyone.
Whether or not you believe the extremely popular internet picture of a man with his mouth open very wide is racist or not; the bottom line is that an extremely talented and caring young teacher’s career is on the line. I no longer work in Central Bucks School District because I moved on to another school district so I was not present during this event. All I can say is that Matt Curran is an outstanding teacher that works unbelievably hard to make his math classes fun and excited (not a simple task in middle school). This is an extremely unfortunate incident, and although it seems inevitable, any negative effects on Matthew Curran’s career would be complete travesty.
Thank you for your insight.
I do believe that the picture – no matter how popular – of a nearly toothless black man dressed up in plantation garb with the misspelled caption No Wai!! is a racist image.
I do not pretend to know what the motive was – if indeed there was any motive – for Matthew Curran to attach the image to an 8th grade pre-algebra worksheet.
this is really rediculous. Mr Curran is the bes tteacher and he would not risk his job or his life reputation by going out of his way to put a racist picture on a math sheet. quite frankly we feel that this should just be forgotten about, just because there is a picture of an african american, does that mean it is racist? If it were a white man wearing the same outfit, there isnt anything anybody would say it. So he is definitely not racist, and he always puts pictures on his worksheets to be kid-friendly. Honestly, why would a man with a happy life go out of his way to post a racist picture, obviously it was an accident but it shouldnt be because it it were a white man it wouldnt be a problem. if anything the comment the student made is worse than the accidental picture believed to be racist.
If it were a white man instead of a black one, would that be offensive? Of course not. This picture displays no stereotype local to blacks.
I think people are putting the blame on the wrong person. What’s offensive is the comment that the student said. Don’t just group the two together.
Really? Plantation garb and a “massa” type of caption isn’t a black stereotype? If you or I put put a figurine of that picture on our lawn, there would be protests.
Look, I’m with the lot of you when it comes to questioning when people see racism in every little thing, but you’re not being intellectually honest if you don’t think that picture is one huge racist stereotype.
I understand that this guy is very popular with lots of supporters. He may be the greatest teacher of all time. He may have meant nothing by it. But defending him by saying there’s nothing wrong with the photo is a losing argument because there clearly is.
you are totally wrong because anyone that is from doylestown, pennsylvania would have said the same thing this woman said. since there isn’t that many black/hispanic/asian/or other races in this town, everyone who isn’t white feel like they have the right to find every little thing that could possibly be taken as racism into a BIGGER issue then it actually is.! Curran is one of the BEST teachers ever! and he should not be getting in trouble for this. this picture is all over the internet and if it were a black teacher doing it, this stupid mom would take it as a joke! this is just ridiculous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No wai isn’t plantation talk. its like a nerdy internet slang word. Like owned and pwned, and Noob. personally, i think we should blame google for having that come up when multiply and divide was searched…
I have never met this teacher before, and I know nothing about him, but this is the most outrageous thing I’ve ever heard of. This picture is not even meant to stereotype blacks, its to stereotype dumb toothless farmers from the south. That picture would have the same exact effect if the man in the picture was white. If a black teacher had posted this same picture except with a white man he would get in no trouble at all, and he shouldn’t because people need to learn how to take a joke. But why the double standard here?
Your comments that the teacher should be fired over this makes no good sense. If he were arrested for DUI, charged with hostile environment sexual harassment, or any number of other transgressions he would be given alternatives to termination. Face it, there is no intent to insult and demean by the teacher. Let the punishment fit the infraction, an apology, required to take courses (and pay for them with his own money) in racism, racial sensitivity or something to that effect along with possibly hosting a one day symposium on race in society, make this a positive learning experience for all. Termination over this is like giving prison time for jaywalking, major overkill. I mean he’s a math teacher not a social science discipline teacher.
That’s a debatable point, and I understand your point of view on it. I just think that using this picture shows a serious lack of judgment, and you can’t seminar up on judgment. I also don’t think his area of interest has anything to do with whether or not the use of this picture is excusable.
The picture is *vaguely* racist by itself, but not really because the point of the picture is the ridiculous face, not the race or the clothing. If that’s what the guy was wearing then that’s what he was wearing, it’s not a big deal. Also if you look at it in the context it was used it was completely race neutral. If all you can see is racial hatred from this story then perhaps you’re projecting your own secret racial intolerances.
Also, I verified if you do a google image search for “multiply and divide” this picture shows up on page 5. Scanning through you’ll find it in under a minute.
OK, it shows up ON PAGE 5 after 4 other pages of more appropriate images. That proves what?
I’m not sure how to look at it “in the context it was used” because the picture has nothing to do with the context of math.
I think I’ve been pretty clear that I do not see “racial hatred” in its use. I see insensitivity and poor judgment.
He chose that picture because it had the phrase “No wai” written underneath it. His students, and I would know I go to that school, and he have a joke about the phrase “no way”. Apparently the students always say “no way” when he gives them work. It’s an ongoing joke with the students and Mr. Curran. It has NOTHING to do with race. The picture also has nothing to do with race, it has to do with the joke with the class. If it was a stupid looking white guy with the phrase “no wai” at the bottom, he would’ve put that on the worksheet. This is not racist at all. People are overly sensitive. If you ask any other african american that goes to Lenape, I know they weren’t offended by this picture.
If “no one” could see it in a racial light, then why did the other kid immediately turn around and ask the one black kid if the guy in the picture was his father. Sounds like someone saw it in a racial light.
Yes, a 12-year-old boy found it racial. Probably trying to be funny and impress the class without knowing he is actually offending someone.
As said many times before, the kid who made the remark should be to blame, not Mr. Curran.
He obviously had no intention to offend anyone in his own classes.
Plantation garb and a “massa” type of caption? No wai!
Seriously, how is that plantation garb? You can’t see enough of what he’s wearing to make that determination. People who don’t live on “plantations” wear hats and suspenders. And since when is lolspeak racist? Haven’t you ever seen the O RLY owls? You should Google that, “no wai” has nothing to do with race.
The teacher shouldn’t be fired for making this mistake. If that man in the picture had been white there wouldn’t even be a question of racism, it would just be a silly picture. It doesn’t seem that race even crossed the teacher’s mind when he chose that picture, which pretty much proves he’s not racist.
If you look at the color image that was converted to black and white on the worksheet (as previously stated, page five on google images), it is clearly a plantation outfit.
I guess one has to ask, then, what exactly would it take for you to see an image as a racist depiction of a black man? What would have to be in that image? In this image, the stereotype is the point.
In order to be able to call what the man is wearing a “plantation outfit,” you have to have some sort of stereotype in your head to begin with. And racism is, nonetheless, a more extreme version of stereotyping. Puts you in the same shoes as Curran, no?
Uh, no. Some things, like lawn jockeys and stepin fetchit outfits, are inherently racist. I’m not sure how turning it around on me bolsters your point.
doesn’t really matter because it isn’t the mportant issue here, but its clearly not a plantation outfit. The man is wearing a weather blue polo-style shirt and what appears to be a bag of some sort over his shoulders. it may still be considered offensive, but taking it back to a racist joke about slavery is a bit unnecessary.
Mr.curran is a great teacher he would neevr do something like this tom make fun of someone in the class. The picture is just a picture, yes it can be upseting to some people but not in any way would Mr.curran do this to make fun of someones race. I think this is an outrage and it is very well shown that they are taking this to far.
I Stand by What i said Mr.Curran would never do something like this in any way to hurt someone
-Sean M
You’re probably right. From what I understand, the insensitivity was not intentional. Unfortunately, even things we don’t intend to do have consequences.
What the adults don’t understand is that Mr. Curran puts funny pictures on all the worksheets, same with all the other math teachers. Like said, if the picture was a white person, and the comment was to a white kid, the situation would be completley different, the person who should be getting called racist is the kid who made the comment, most certainly not Mr. Curran.
Also, heard from neighborhood talk, the student who the comment was made too, and was offended by, was bragging about the whole thing.
If it was a nearly all-black school with one white kid in the class and the black teacher put a picture of a white toothless hillbilly on a worksheet it would be equally insensitive.
12-year old kids have an excuse for saying and doing stupid and insensitive things: They’re 12-year-old kids.
If you read the article above, I clearly believe the mother is opportunistic for calling the NAACP in. She’s no winner in this story either.
hes 13 and hes not the only african american in our grade. There are many more! who cares what race we are! we are all equal and im sure that the kid is okay, hes probably just nervous to come back, because he thinks kids are going to make fun of him for gettting everyones favorite teacher in trouble, but he needs to understand that as part of lenape middle school, we agree on not making fun of people, and if we do we get talked to by a higher authority right away. lenape middle school is an awesome school, and i am glad i have the privelige to go there.
Maybe you should talk to the kid who asked “is that your father” about how awesome and equal everything is at Lenape Middle School.
the student was making a joke. in middle school, you get lightly made fun of ALL THE TIME. you can’t go and sue teacher’s for that. it’s a joke. you get made fun of everything and anything sometimes in middle school. if he wasn’t getting teased for that, he would be lightly teased for something else. he and his mother shouldn’t have overreacted like they did.
I think I said she overreacted in the main article.
alright, true. but he isn’t stupid. i also respect that you shared your opinion. sorry everyone’s attacking you, but we’re standing up for a really good teacher the only way we can.
I don’t feel attacked. Discussion is what all of this is about.
If it were a white person would it be a problem? I was a student of mr curran and he had pictures on everything we did because we liked them. some were funny, most about cool ranch Doritos. THis is being taken way too far. The family should have contacted mr curran not the naacp. If its racist to them why isnt it racist to my african american friend sitting right next to me? Save Mr. curran from this nonsense
As I said, if it was a nearly all-black school with one white kid in the class and the black teacher put a picture of a white toothless hillbilly on a worksheet it would be equally insensitive.
I agree that the family should have handled this in the school and not called in the NAACP trouble makers. Because the mother acted badly doesn’t make the original infraction right, though.
i wouldnt think it was racist! i would laugh because it is a funny picture! life is too short to get worked up over something so silly. mr curran already apologized to all of us lenape students/staff, and we accept it. sometimes in life we make stupid mistakes, but we need to pick each other back on and accept it.
**pick each othe back up and accept it**
It may have been a stupid mistake, but he didn’t have bad intent. This was definitely not an attack or anything.
I remember one quote in an article saying something along the lines of “It’s not an apology, it’s an admittance to being caught”
Yeah right.
This guy definitely threw his career out on the line to attack this one kid in his math class.
Totally.
Personally I think the ruining of his reputation has been plenty enough punishment. Definitely not termination or fines, and ‘courses on racial sensitivity’ seems a bit ridiculous as well.
IT WAS A JOKE WITH HIS CLASS! It’s not racist!
exactly! he meant nothing by it! hes such a nice and innocent man! hes an awesome teacher!
We can debate whether or not he should be fired. I’m not sure how I feel about it. He’s obviously had a positive impact on a lot of kids.
can we please just leave mr.curran alone! he did nothing wrong! it was not meant to be racist at all so stop dissing my teacher! he is an awesome man! if you knew him you would agree and think the complete opposite of what you are saying. so please just leave him alone, because personally you dont know him. Thanks.
I think I’ve said about a dozen times now that I don’t think your teacher is a racist but the image is racist and using the image shows poor judgment.
The inclusion of this photo is nonsensical at first glance, but after Mr. Curran’s reasoning, I feel it is a “silly” way to have the students remember the point. A toothless man with a gaping mouth IS funny, and will stick out in a student’s mind. As for the caption, “No Wai” goes along with “Oh Hai” and other captions usually featured under pictures of cats, and has no correlation with the man’s race. I feel that this instance has been taken entirely out of context, and I believe the student who issued the rascist remark should be the one who this argument is focused on. Although he or she is a child, racism is never ok. As for Mr. Curran, I wish him the best in this situation, as he has been unneccesarily targeted. If there had been a picture of a white man portrayed as a “wild hillbilly” or a “Redneck”, as toothless white men are often stereotyped as, there would be no conflict, which is racist in itself, Steven.
Valid point, but that’s not right either.
Exactly. Would you write an article about that, though? I think not. This is a man’s JOB in jeopardy, let’s put this in perspective.
If you don’t think I’d write an article about that, or an article calling out people who cry “racism” where there is no racism, then you haven’t looked around this site enough.
Well that’s a relief, kudos to you for taking on rarely-publicized issues.
This whole thing is getting to out of control. I had Mr. Curran for two years and he always put funny pictures on math worksheets. Although this might not have been the best picture, it relates to the students. He apoligized twice to the mum, clearly he didn’t know it would offend the student. The classmates comment about “Is this your father?” was absolutly NOT Mr. Currans fault, which seems to be thought. Besides, i’m sure everyone has been told some pretty harsh things, were talking about MIDDLE SCHOOL HERE. He definatly should not be fired because of one simple mistake..
oh and also hes not a stupid teacher, like your title implies. hes a smart, kind, NOT RACIST man that shouldn’t be fired
I think whats more important here is whether or not this man deserves to be fired for a lapse in judgment that got blown way out of proportion. Clearly the picture is racially insensitive and he should apologize/be reprimanded for it. However, I don’t think anyone can truly say that the picture was posted out of any sort of malice or hate, especially to the child who was offended by the picture. Why ruin the life of a man who by many accounts is an excellent and caring teacher? What is the true motivation of the mother?
Agreed.
okay good. im just worried that if people read this they’ll get a slanted view of Mr. Curran and Lenape and the whole CB School District. its a really really good school and this whole thing is messed up.
How should Matt be punished for displaying a funny picture on a math packet. When i was in middle school, a funny picture of (hippo man) would help me to learn. When i would see a comical photo i would think… Ooo maybe this will be fun to learn. The student who said is this your dad should be the one who deserves the punishment not Mr. Curran. Also the kid needs to toughen up, people get called names everday, and he better get used to it because he will never get through highschool telling his mommy everytime someone calls him a mean name.
Search up multiply and divide on google. That image is on the 5th page. And it is completely independent of this discussion, therefore proving Mr. Curran’s statement that he saw it on google.
Alright.
So to clarify, your point is that regardless of intent, the image is racially insensitive, correct?
I’m really not seeing it.
I don’t think the kid would have even mentioned anything to his mother if it weren’t for the “Is that your dad?” comment. And the kid definitely mentioned it to his mother. She wasn’t glancing over at his math homework and he conveniently remembered exactly what the other kid said and how incredibly prejudiced against he felt- he definitely brought it up.
I think the kid who commented is much more the problem than the teacher. Obviously the kid isn’t going to be fined or anything, but Mr. Curran shouldn’t be fired/fined/other stuff in place of this kid.
I didn’t even have this guy, but he seems really nice and reading the article left a bad taste in my mouth. And I know how much everyone else likes him.
Please, tell me your points, I’d like to know them.
For about the 12th time, my point is that the image is racially insensitive at the very least, and using it on a math worksheet was poor judgment.
The commenters with first hand knowledge of the teacher have changed my mind about the school being justified if they fire him. He’s clearly had a huge positive impact on the students, past and present, and this was clearly not malicious and not even intentional based on what those who know him say.
That said, there has to be some consequence for the poor judgment.
And what would you recommend? If it was clearly unintentional, classes on ‘racial sensitivity’ and stuff clearly aren’t going to help. He has learned his lesson enough with this whole fiasco; you can’t honestly think he’s ever, ever going to do something like this again? I think his reputation being ruined is punishment enough.
And please, have some patience. You basically said exactly what I thought your point was going to be, I was just clarifying.
This is an honest mistake. Haven’t you ever made a mistake that was very embarassing??? Not only did the mother publicly humiliate her son, but her the teacher too! How would you feel if you made a mistake and it was published in the paper and on the news! He is a great teacher and made a mistake. Everyone needs to stop making such a big deal over a mistake. And if you don’t know him you have no right to make fun of him, or call him stupid. He apoligized to everyone he knows and he reported that he tries to make math fun because not all kids like that subject. IT WAS AN HONEST MISTAKE!!! Please let his life go back to normal of being a fantastic math teacher, and a great guy.
yes! thank you! you have no right steven to say that he is stupid! that offends me! so don’t be calling anyone stupid, because it takes one to know one.
this is just beyond RIDICULOUS!…I had Mr. Curran when I was in 9th grade at Lenape, and he was one of the BEST teachers i’ve had. He does not show any type of racism towards ANYONE!!!!!…there was two black kids in my class and a student with disabilities and there was NO WAY I could say that he was racist towards any of them. he is one of the NICEST teachers i’ve ever met. this is just stupid and pointless and that woman is just trying to get money. I remember he always had pictures because he would want to make the class fun for us. If he gets fired, Lenape will lose ONE OF THE BEST TEACHERS TO EVER GO THROUGH LENAPE MIDDLE SCHOOL. bottomline-he’s not racist and he always wants the best for his students and he would do anything to help his students and make their days better and fun! this womannn needs to find something better to entertain herselfff!! i feel so bad for Curran!
Was it the best choice picture? No. Was it intended to offend anyone because of their race? Absolutely not. I agree that a better picture could’ve been chosen, but come on, Mr. Curran, a very respected teacher at my school, would not risk his job–or his dignity–for one stupid little picture. The situation, to me, is blown way out of proportion. Just let it go. It’s ONE picture.
Steven maybe you should keep your comments to yourself. if you knew Mr. Curran, you would not be saying all this pointless B.S!….
I think this is ridiculous. I went to lenape from 06-09 and I think this isn’t something to get all hyped up about. Honestly, what about the racism and reverse racism students face there everyday just from each other? Mr. Curran would not have deliberately offended someone and it was over the top for a parent to want him to be sued. Good luck Curran, all us lenape students are backing you up!
Have these people shouting out accusations of racism not been on 4chan SomethingAwful or other image boards around the net? Well, I suppose not. (And if you haven’t, take caution if you go to look. There’s a lot of good stuff mixed in with a lot of inappropiate NSFW material.)
NO WAI!! is a caption that’s been put on to many different images around the net just out of silliness. It started off with the ORLY? YARLY! NOWAI!! owl pictures that I assume at least some of you know of, and has been a meme on the internet for years. All of the pictures I’ve seen used deal with someone or something with their mouth open as if to shout, “NOWAI!!” in surprise (duh). I’ve seen it on kittens, actors, and random crap that the internet generates, because it’s quite good at that. Implying that this particular picture is meant as racist and derogatory on the part of Mr. Curran is a quick and ludicrous assumption. Perhaps the person who created the image may or may not have meant it as such, but in the vast realm of the internets, it’s just another silly and humorous NOWAI!! picture.
I believe that the majority of people who say this is racist do not understand this picture in its original context, and are being quick to jump to their conclusions.
Poor Mr. Curran should not be held at fault here. How was he to know that what he understood as a silly internet meme would be taken as a racist comment on his part?
I really hope that this does not seriously hinder or hurt his career. I never had the man as a teacher, but my friends did, and from what I know he’s a really wonderful teacher.
I went to Lenape four years ago, and though I did not have Mr. Curran as a teacher, I knew him very well. In all my time with him, I never heard anything remotely prejudiced nor offensive to me. This picture is definitely offensive (using the word’s intrinsic definition: “causing someone to feel deeply hurt, upset, or angry), but is it racist? That is the ultimate question. One can pose a philosophical question here about the subjectivity/objectivity of morality, and that would get nobody anywhere. I feel that this picture is offensive, and yes, possibly racist based on an individual’s view, but to bring the NAACP into this, that is ridiculous. The mother of this child had every right to be offended and demand an apology from Curran, but contacting the NAACP on this issue, that is just impulsive. It seems like the mother is more offended than the child is.
Also, Doylestown, though not a very diverse area, is definitely not a racist town. Though predominantly Caucasian, Doylestown has plenty of African-Americans in the public schools that do not feel offended, or do not overtly express their offense, at questionably “racist” material. Yes, Curran made a stupid decision. Should he be fired over this? The only conceivable reason I can see him losing his job for is the bureaucracy of the public school system in their putting reputation over the life of a highly valued educator.
Let’s face it, when an African American family settles in a predominantly white area, they are making an unconscious gamble to expose their child to racism and offensive material. It just so happens that offensive things are inevitable because humanity has differing opinions on things. For one woman to bring this to the NAACP and get a lawyer involved, that is ridiculous and opportunistic. I would like to hear what this woman has said behind Curran’s back…I wonder if her views are “racist”.
I must say that this is probably the most ridiculous thing i have ever read. First, it was not Mr. Curran who made the comment that black people were stupid or any relevance to that. I did not have Mr. Curran as a teacher, but many of my peers did and all i ever heard from them were compliments about their wonderful math teacher, who really connected with his students. Also, i believe the student who made the comment about “is that your dad?” should be punished, not Mr. Curran. Another thing that should be considered is that i just googled multiply and divide and this picture came up, so we know Mr. Curran isn’t lying. Mr. Curran is a great teacher and it isn’t his fault some student made the comment they did.
So suspenders, straw hat, and shirt are racist? No teeth is racist? If it was a white man would someone have turned around to the little boy from West Virginia and yelled NASCAR! No one would have done anything. Racism is becoming this one way street where anything with the slightest hint of [accidental] racism is grounds for calling the NAACP in?? Granted that legitimate racism is grounds for getting upset, but I mean if anyone should be persecuted/reprimanded it should be the other child who made the racist remark. Why is it Curran’s fault that the little boy thought of something racist when looking at a picture of a black man, that barely has any possible hints of racism. Honestly anyone who comes up with a racist remark already has it in their head, it doesn’t just magically come to them once they see something like this picture (which in color is even less racist. If it was supposedly playing off of slavery/plantation workers… I don’t recall the slaves wearing blue polo shirts). This is just yet another thing that has gotten blown way out of proportion and has caused the wrong person to get blamed. Nothing is being said of the other child because why? He doesn’t know better for making a harsh, blatant comment while the most subtle, barely construable form of racism gets stomped on? Tell me how that makes sense.
I’m not sure which site you’re reading where “nothing is being said of the other child.” There are numerous comments here about the other child.
Honestly. This is stupid. If everything about that picture was exactly the same, except the mans skin pigment, there would be no problem. If the man was white, and the black child had said to another student, “look at this redneck, is that your dad?”, I am doubtful he would have even been punished. I played lacrosse for Coach Curran for 4 years, and as a minority student I can tell you I would never have played for or respected him for as long as I have if he was a racist. What this woman needs to do, is pop some chill pills and get on with her life. I am a “student of color”, so I feel like I can comment freely on this women’s irrational response. Klan members are always angry about things like “reverse-racism” and take everything that black people do too seriously and personally, and the NAACP is worse if anything. Don’t even bring up what the Klan used to do, because that just doesn’t happen anymore. Get over it. White people can’t walk through parts of big cities like DC or Chicago. I know this because I have had friends get robbed at gunpoint and mugged in both of these places. Tell me the places where a black person can’t walk without getting robbed. None come to mind. This woman needs to get over herself, and start realizing that she is putting a very talented teachers job on the line, for no reason. The picture is not blatantly racist; no derogatory terms are used. Most people will look at this picture, and not even connect it with black people. All they will notice is a redneck, which come in both colors, and the humorous spelling of “way”. In fact, I feel like this woman is stereotyping her own ethnic/racial group. I can not take this seriously, she is an outlier in the community, just like any member of the Klan or the NAACP. Before she tries to strip an outstanding teacher of his job, I want to know what she’s done for the community, and what she will do in the future.
Mr. Curran is one of the best math teachers I’ve ever had. To accuse him with something such as racism is absurd. I remember eighth-grade math with Mr. Curran as one of my more enjoyable subjects. He always kept the class fun, especially with his creative and humorous pictures on his worksheets and quizzes.
Mr. Curran, in my opinion based on personal experiences as a former student of his, is one of the best math teachers in Lenape. I remember having trouble in math and he worked with me and backed me up throughout the entire year. I thank him for that, and I support him in every way possible.
If the teacher didn’t know that this picture was offensive, I’m not sure I would want him teaching my children. He is there to educate and protect his students. After the student made the comment to the black student he should have jumped in right away and made it a teaching moment. I assume he is college educated and his years of schooling should have taught him that this stereotype is wrong. I refuse to believe that he could not have known. Action must be taken. For those of you that are defending him you need racial sensitivity classes. Ignorance is no excuse.
ur ridiculous Tony. If you knew mr. curran, you will never think that he was racist. if i had children, i would love for them to have mr. curran as a teacher. he is ne of the few teachers that actually cares about ur education and wants to make class enjoyable. AND U REALLY THINK THAT HE COULD HEAR THE KID ASK THE BLACK KID IF THAT WAS HIS FATHER? OF COURSE NOT, THERES 25 OTHER KIDS IN THE CLASS ROOM AND THE BLACK KID WAS OBVIOUSLY DUMB IF HE DIDNT SAY ANYTHING TO THE TEACHER SO IT IS NOT HIS FAULT!…I will never expect this to happen to matt curran. and seeing everything on facebook, the kid did not even know his parents were doing this. he had no clue until this afternoon when his parents came home and he saw all the media talking. they lied to him by telling him they were going to work but instead they were going to meet with the school with a lawyer! THEY ARE OBVIOUSLY INNN FOR THE FREAKEN MONEY!! CAN U GUYS NOT SEE THIS?!?!?… mr. currannnn! we all LOVE youuuu! and u will be one of the few teachers that will stay with me forever
Mr. Curran is the wrong person getting looked at in this. The kid who made the comment should be getting into trouble, which probably will not happening. The black kid can feel upset but come on grow up. There are going to be a lot worse things said and done to him in life because of his race. Now the people i feel are the dumbest in this are his parents. How they did not see this coming when they moved to a community that is 90 percent white is beyond me. I have known Mr. Curran almost my whole life and firing him is pointless. Every student who has ever had him as a teacher will agree that he is one of the best teachers at the school. He cares a lot about the students and wants them to do well in life.
This is completely rediculous! Mr.Curran is a excellent teacher and cares so much about each student. You do not even know the man and yet you come out and say he is racist and should be fired. How dare you say that? He has made a mistake, and I have learned not to judge people because that could one day be you and you’ll be written up by some jerk who is saying the same BS. He has apologized to the family as well, and has been completely embaressed by all the publicity. Mr.Curran would never do something like this intetionally and I think (along with almost every student and teacher at lenape) that he deserves a second chance becasue he is one of the rare teachers that really DOES care, and he has made a mistake and is willing to admit it and try to move on, and I think we should all do the same.
Maybe if he taught English, one of you would know how to spell ridiculous.
shows how much you care, get a real job!
I graduated from Central Bucks School District five years ago. After all these years, I still remember Mr. Curran and the positive effect he has had on Central Bucks. I do not believe his intentions were malicious. He is a great teacher and firing him, in my opinion, would be ridiculous. All that is needed is an apology; which he is more than willing to give.