ST. PETERSBURG - Members of the International People's Democratic Uhuru Movement made appearances at two St. Petersburg high schools in recent days.
On May 6, a small group demonstrated on the sidewalk in front of Lakewood High, 1400 54th Ave. S, to protest the suspension of Uhuru leader Omali Yeshitela's granddaughter.
Jainaba Phillips, 17, had been suspended the previous day after distributing fliers that said Pinellas County detectives "executed" 17-year-old Marquell McCullough on May 2. When school officials asked her to turn over the fliers, she resisted.
Principal Fred Ulrich said Phillips was suspended for defiance, but Uhuru leaders claimed she was being "targeted" for her beliefs. They accused Ulrich of violating Phillips' right to free speech and branded the principal as racist in the early morning demonstration. He denied their accusations.
"This had nothing to do with race, religion, creed or any other discriminatory thing," Ulrich said afterward. "The board is very specific in its policy about distribution of leaflets and fliers and things of that nature in a public school. It's also very specific on standards of conduct between students and adults on campus."
Lakewood High junior Kahran Myers, 16, a black student who is a member of the principal's multicultural advisory committee, said the incident caused many black students to question the Uhurus' motives.
"The majority of African-Americans I know do not agree with the Uhurus," she said. "They're supposed to be for equal rights, but when you do stuff like this, it just makes people disrespect you."
In a telephone interview after the demonstration, Uhuru leader Chimurenga Waller argued that the school system has a double standard when it comes to free speech, allowing some fliers to be distributed but banning others.
"We believe this is an example not just of a problem at Lakewood, but throughout the racist school system in that it attempts to hide the history of what happens to black people," he said.
On Tuesday, Uhuru members demonstrated at Northeast High School, 5500 16th St. N, to protest what they called another attack on free speech. On Monday, principal Michael Miller had told a student who was wearing a T-shirt memorializing McCullough to either turn the shirt inside out or wear a jacket over it because the word "revenge" was printed on the back. The student complied.
But one of the nine Uhuru members who gathered at the school the next day carried a placard that read "Northeast is racist." As parents pulled into the car circle to drop off children before the school's 7:05 a.m. start time, Uhuru official Sateesh Rogers used a bullhorn to encourage students to tell the principal he could not dictate their attire.
Northeast High senior John Falcone, who is white, watched the demonstrators warily from a beat-up white Chevrolet Corsica in the student parking lot.
"I'm scared now," he said as he walked toward the school. "This is going to cause all kinds of hell."
Other students were drawn to the protest. A small group of mostly African-American girls gathered about 20 feet from the demonstrators, where they remained even after school started. About 10 minutes into first period, a woman in a golf cart drove toward them.
Campus activities monitor Rochelle Peak, who is black, positioned herself between the protesters and the students and reminded the students that only six days remained before the end of the school year.
"You all need to be in class trying to get your education," she said. "This isn't worth it."
