POWHATAN COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Tuesday night’s Powhatan County School Board meeting had such a large turnout from parents and students hoping to voice their concerns about how the school district is handling alleged issues with racism in its schools, that it was called off due to overcrowding.
The meeting, held on the night of Tuesday, March 12 at the Pocahontas Landmark Center, was suspended by the Fire Marshal around 20 minutes in due to the venue being over capacity.
“I have some unfortunate news for everyone, news that you’re not going to like,” said school board chair Dr. James Taylor to the crowd before it was announced that the meeting would be postponed.
Deone Allen, the parent of a Powhatan County Public Schools student who had planned to speak about the racist acts students say take place every day in the county’s schools, said she’s disappointed that the meeting wasn’t moved elsewhere.
“This is crazy, this is just crazy,” she said. “All these people that showed up here, and to be turned away, it’s just crazy. I’m surprised.”
A photo which circulated online allegedly showing a Powhatan High School student with a racial slur written on her arm resulted in outrage from the community. The two students involved in the incident were reportedly disciplined, but some community members say the punishment was not serious enough for this type of behavior.
8News asked Dr. Taylor to comment on the situation, but he declined. It is not known when or where a rescheduled meeting will taken place.
This is a developing story, stay with 8News for updates.
