US school celebrates Black History Month with fried chicken and watermelon

A New York college officials have apologized after serving students fried chicken, watermelon and waffles on the first day of Black History Month.< /p>

In a letter to parents, officials at Nyack Middle School, an hour from New York City, apologized for the "inexcusably insensitive" meal, which played historical stereotypes racists.

"The offer of chicken and waffles as a starter with watermelon for dessert on the first day of Black History Month was inexcusably insensitive and reflected a lack of understanding of our district's vision for addressing racial bias," Nyack manager David Johnson said, local news affiliate WABC reported.

School administrators added that the school food vendor, Aramark, provided a different meal than what had been scheduled.

Students were to be served cheesesteaks, broccoli and fruit on Feb. 1, according to a menu posted on the school's website .

Black people's association with watermelon dates back to the abolition of slavery in the United States. After emancipation, many black people grew the fruits and sold them, and they became symbols of their freedom. According to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, white people opposed to ending slavery later used watermelons to demean black people.

Meanwhile, because that slaves perfected techniques for making fried chicken, this food was also used to mock black people in the United States, wrote Professor Marcia Chatelain – who teaches history and African American studies at the Georgetown University – in The Washington Post in 2019.

Students and parents said they were hurt by the modified meal option.

"They were asking people if they wanted watermelon and I remember being confused because it's not in season," Nyack student Honoré Santiago told WABC7.

Santiago added, "I didn't think the company was capable of making us feel bad...especially the kids of my color.

Aramark has since apologized for the meal.

"The situation at this hool center was our mistake and should never have happened,” an Aramark spokesperson said in a statement, The Washington Post reported.

This last meal is not the first time Aramark has come under fire for a meal with racist undertones.

In 2018, Aramark received widespread backlash for serving students at the University of New York a meal featuring watermelon-flavored water as part of a meal honoring Black History Month, The New York Times reported.

After that school officials publicly called the meal "insensitive," Aramark fired several employees who performed the meal without including school staff.

The university terminated its contract with Aramark the following year.

< p class="dcr-h26idz">Aramark sparked similar controversy in 2011 after serving fried chicken and waffles to students at the University of California, Irvine on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.