Teens get an earful about their “white privilege” at sanctioned high school assembly

Teens get an earful about their “white privilege” at sanctioned high school assembly December 9, 2016

Students at a prestigious high school in New Jersey were treated to an impromptu lecture on their “white privilege” during a speech that was supposed to teach them about online safety.

Alison Macrina, the founder of the Library Freedom Project, was invited by Princeton High School to teach kids what to watch out for and what to avoid when they surf the web. However, she got miffed midway through her talk after a few teens started to giggle their way through her speech on encountering racist and sexist trolls online.

As it turns out, the students said they were laughing about trolls, not the comments on racism or sexism. But in the moment, Macrina became incensed and assumed it must be their “white privilege” kicking in and felt it necessary to call them out.

Heatstreet reports:

She accused the students of cheering for white supremacist symbols like Nazi swastikas. Discussing the incident afterward on Twitter — where she goes by the handle “local resistance” — Macrina said she was “astonished”.

When the student started laughing during the assembly, Macrina emotionally lectured them on their “white privilege”, which only got the students rowdier.

Yes, like any good millennial, Macrina lashed out on Twitter admitting she injected anti-Trump sentiments, too:

Screen Shot 2016-12-08 at 12.27.07 PM

Screen Shot 2016-12-08 at 12.27.20 PM

The principal of the school sent out an apology to students on behalf of the invited guest:

“We live in a turbulent time with emotions running high. While I can’t make excuses for our speaker, my perception is that she found herself caught up in the post-election climate and allowed that to influence her presentation.”

I’m calling BS on that because if the principal would’ve looked at Macrina’s website even for a second, it would’ve been very apparent that her organization is all about identity politics and the “global struggles for justice.” Surely the school could’ve found a more neutral source for kids to learn how to stay safe online.


Browse Our Archives

Follow Us!