The Pool Safety Poster in Fort Morgan, Colorado had some heads turning after someone brought attention to the fact that it’s message seemed to be clearly telling black kids to behave!
The outrage has since brought out an apology from the Red Cross but it just shows how deeply racism is ingrained into this country!
John Sawyer (@JSawyer330) took to social media to spread the poster and demand for it’s removal after seeing it in more than one location. Originally thinking it was a relic of a worse time he was shocked to see it was in wide-spread use!
The poster features the headline Be Cool, Follow The Rules and points out white kids as being cool and black kids (misbehaving) as being not cool.
What’s unbelievable is that the Red Cross officials who okayed this and put it in place did not notice this!
The Red Cross issued an apology and confirmed the poster is removed from hospitals, online and from their swim app. They Said:
“The American Red Cross appreciates and is sensitive to the concerns raised regarding one of the water safety posters we produced,”
“We deeply apologize for any misunderstanding, as it was absolutely not our intent to offend anyone. As one of the nation’s oldest and largest humanitarian organizations, we are committed to diversity and inclusion in all that we do, every day.”
“Going forward, we are developing more appropriate materials that are more representative of our workforce and the communities we serve,” the statement continued. “Our aquatic instructors have been notified of these concerns and we will advocate that our aquatic partner facilities remove the poster until revised materials are available.
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Is it enough? Some are calling for them to do more to link with black swimming organizations such as Black Kids Swim!
You can read more here: http://nbcnews.to/28WX0zg
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