MATHEWS COUNTY, Va. (WAVY) — There’s an investigation underway after racist graffiti was found in a school bathroom in Mathews County, and its superintendent faces criticism for his slow response.
It has parents in the rural school division — about 15 miles east of Gloucester — and the local chapter of the NAACP asking a lot of questions.
The words of hate were found in a bathroom at Mathews High School. The words were “KILL N*s”.
Part of the concern — how the school system responded to the threat by not announcing it for nearly a week. He said it was etched into the wall of one of the school’s restrooms Jan. 10.
10 On Your Side went looking for answers.
The racist graffiti went up on the bathroom wall last Wednesday, and the local NAACP said the school’s superintendent was slow to respond.
Mathews branch NAACP member Yvette Willis Gaither was on a Zoom call when Mathews County Schools Superintendent Dr. David Daniel met with the NAACP.
“Imagine how the Black kids feel when you see something engraved, they could not erase,” Gaither said. “It was engraved, and it said ‘KILL N.'”
Gaither is upset by how poorly Daniel handled the situation, and even Daniel admits he could have done a better job after not letting the community know immediately.
“It is a failure on my part,” Daniel said, “so I should have been more diligent, and more active in communicating with our community, letting them know what is going on.”
Monday night Gaither told Daniel that if he don’t put out advisories on what happened, he would call for him to resign.
“I told him [that] if there wasn’t anything written by the superintendent,” Gaither said, “that I would start a write-in campaign for his resignation because of his lack of response for the people of color, the Black kids.”
Daniel agreed to meet with 10 On Your Side, and we pointed it out too, and she said that if you don’t get this to the newspaper, she is going to call for your resignation.
“Yes, absolutely,” Daniel said, “and … we put that message in today, and we pushed the message to our families on social media, and we took it to the paper.”
Daniel’s message, in part:
“A racist, threatening statement was etched into the wall of one of the restrooms at Mathews High School. … It in no way represents the students of Mathews High School nor will it come to define who we are as a school community. This unspeakable act has fractured the safety of our students and will not be tolerated.”
He is doing more than that.
“We are working with the administration to work with faculty and staff to generate a student initiative to combat racism and push back against this type of behavior,” Daniel said.
The school division also put a link to allow people to report information anonymously to its website.
The Mathews County Sheriff’s Office has been brought in also.
“We are working in connection with the Sheriff’s Office [and] our community partners to try and get to the bottom of the situation,” Daniel said.
The Sheriff’s Office will be investigating whether what was written was a hate crime.
Edith Turner, of the Mathews Branch NAACP, is convinced it is a hate crime.
“Look, it wasn’t just the N word. It was ‘kill’ and the N word, so that is a hate crime,” Turner said.
Said Daniel: “This is a hateful act, and it is a hateful criminal act.”
Full statement Superintendent issued to MCPS families:
Dear MCPS Families,
On Wednesday, January 10, 2024 a racist, threatening statement was etched onto the wall of one of the restrooms at Mathews High School.
Mathews County Public Schools condemns this action in the strongest possible way and it in no way represents the students of Mathews High School nor will it come to define who we are as a school community. This unspeakable act has fractured the safety of our students and will not be tolerated. We will be working with our student leadership, faculty & staff, and community organizations to push back against racism.
The safety of our students remains our top priority. Counselor services are available to any student in our division who may feel unsafe or have concerns stemming from this heinous act in our school.
A joint investigation with the Mathews Sheriff’s Office remains ongoing and we are seeking assistance in resolving this crime. If you have information regarding this act, please reach out to the Mathews Sheriff’s Office or the administration at MHS. If you are uncomfortable or concerned about having your identity known, you can report information anonymously by going to our website.
Sincerely,
Dr. David S. Daniel
Mathews County Public Schools Superintendent