Black students, community groups tell Santa Barbara Unified board they face persistent racial harassment; demand zero‑tolerance policies

“Why? Why have you allowed a culture of hate to grow on your campuses?” asked Iris Seor, a Dos Pueblos student, in a forceful opening to a sequence of public comments at the June 9 Santa Barbara Unified board meeting. Seor and other members of the Black Student Union, Healing Justice staff and teachers urged the board to act after what they described as repeated incidents of racial slurs and insufficient administrative responses.

The public‑comment period grew into the meeting’s most sustained and emotional segment, with students and staff citing multiple reports of students being called the n‑word, alleged “monkey noises,” and one staff line‑reported incident described by speakers as a “swear jar” in which use of the n‑word was reportedly treated as a fine. Speakers said investigations were delayed or incomplete and that the district’s 2020 resolution pledging a prompt response to bias has not produced consistent results.

Students and community groups laid out a short list of formal demands: a districtwide zero‑tolerance enforcement policy for non‑Black students using the n‑word; guaranteed immediate parent notification when incidents are reported; required reflection/remediation assignments for perpetrators; improved and mandatory teacher training on responding to race‑based incidents; fuller investigations of allegations involving teachers and administrators; and a concerted effort to hire and retain Black teachers and counselors to better reflect and support students.

Public commenters tied those demands to practical steps. Asha Richie, a graduating senior and former Santa Barbara High BSU president, urged that repeated racist behavior “should result in stronger disciplinary action, including and up to detention, suspension, removal from extracurricular activities, and further administrative consequences” and suggested reflection essays and community‑service elements tied to cultural learning.

Healing Justice and staff allies underscored the policy deficiency they described. Simone (co‑founder, Healing Justice) told the board, “We believe them,” and pressed leaders for investigations into why reports had not been filed or were not followed through. Several speakers said that when students reported incidents to counselors or administrators, the victim — not the alleged perpetrator — faced punitive follow‑up.

Board members acknowledged the weight of the testimony. Trustee Escobedo and others said they wanted a future agenda item to bring formal recommendations from CABA and the Black Student Unions and to build a sustained plan. Dr. Maldonado and several trustees reiterated that the district’s investigation and support systems exist in principle, but that the systems only work if staff implement them consistently.

What happens next: trustees asked for an agendaized follow-up to discuss policy changes, with an explicit invitation to engage directly with Black student groups and CABA. Several trustees emphasized that professional development must be sustained rather than one‑off, and that site administrative supports and complaint tracking deserve immediate review.

Provenance: Witnessed in multiple public‑comment segments (Iris Seor SEG 540–572; Leticia Rush SEG 573–621; Eco Vallette SEG 691–739; Amina Ahmed SEG 834–850; Simone, virtual SEG 944–997).