OUTRAGEOUS

Museum of Fine Arts in Boston Apologizes to 7th-Graders for Racist Comments Made During Field Trip

The school’s principal said one museum staff member told the seventh-graders “no food, no drink, and no watermelon” during their visit.

The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston issued an apology Wednesday after students of color on a seventh-grade field trip were reportedly met by racist comments from staff and some patrons, The Boston Globe reports. “Last week, a number of students on an organized visit encountered a range of challenging and unacceptable experiences that made them feel unwelcome,” MFA said in a statement published on their website, noting that the museum was “extremely troubled” by the incident affecting the 30 students from Helen Y. Davis Leadership Academy in Dorchester. The school’s principal, Arturo J. Forrest, said a museum staff member had told the students “no food, no drink, and no watermelon” during their visit. He said museum security had also appeared to follow students of color while leaving white students alone, and a patron had told a female student to pay attention on the trip so she wouldn't end up becoming a stripper. “This was a strong group of students that went, they excelled academically,” Forrest said. “The shock of it for them was, ‘We are the top and we carry ourselves the right way as leaders.’ You know, it was very eye-opening for them.”