Senior and budding thespian Nelson Felipe.
Wilbur Cross students offered a response of sorts to a vandal who sprayed swastikas on their campus — by juju-ing on that beat, perfecting their mannequin challenge poses, and celebrating their diversity at an annual pre-Thanksgiving pep-rally.
Students geared up to face their crosstown rivals, Hillhouse High School, on Thanksgiving Day for the Elm City Bowl football game by packing out their gym Wednesday morning, and the energy was high. The pep rally was the culmination of a week of mostly highs and one would-be low.
The high included students, staff, parents and a community partner’s successful food drive that will feed more than 25 families this Thanksgiving providing complete meals including a turkey. Students also got to sign up for workshops Wednesday before the pep-rally that included meditation, aerodynamics and drumming, which is par for the course on early dismissal days, according to Cross Principal Edith Johnson.
Markeshia Ricks Photo
Cross Drama students show off a little Suessical.
The one low was the vandalism of a concession stand at the Wilbur Cross Athletic Complex where walls and some equipment were spray painted with red swastikas, profanity and references to Donald Trump. The school building was not vandalized, and students were never in any danger. In fact, only personnel who had gone into that area of the complex to retrieve equipment ever saw the paint job, Johnson said.
Cross football players ready for the big game.
But students Wednesday weren’t focused on the handiwork of whoever at best attempted a tasteless prank and at worst committed a heinous hate crime.
They focused instead on fellow students who demonstrated their talents in drama and dance in front of the whole school. They cheered on athletes in fall sports, especially their gridiron gladiators who bear the responsibility of bringing home a win on Thursday.
Sophomore Jahlil Jefferies wows the crowd with her dance moves and acrobatics.
When pep-rally emcee Ronald “Huggie Bear” Huggins commanded the DJ to drop the beat, students flooded the floor to show off their dance skills while belting out the lyrics of “Ju Ju On That Beat” and Young M.A.‘s “Ooouuu.” When the pop and hip-hop songs to which the majority of students, and a number of faculty, seemed to know all the words gave way to more Latin influenced songs, students of all ethnicities broke out their best salsa and merengue.
Principal Johnson shows her salsa dancing skills.
Even Johnson got in a couple of steps, though she had to shoo students back to the stands to keep the pep-rally from turning into one big school dance.
“You all are doing an awesome job,” Johnson told students Wednesday. “I swear you are the best kids in the city of New Haven, the state of Connecticut and the world. You are awesome. Now have a seat!”
“Wilbur Cross y’all gotta stay in the stands, but y’all know we Cross Pride family, right?” Huggins added. “If you glad to be a part of this Cross Pride, make some noise!”
Future Project students, who along along with their Dream Director Frank E. Brady organized the rally.
And so they did.
Johnson said after the pep rally that what someone chose to do by vandalizing the concession stand doesn’t change what it means to have Cross Pride in a school known for its diversity.
“It is unfortunate that someone did that, but it doesn’t change who we are as a school community,” Johnson said. “Our kids are safe in our building. They feel it ‚and you can see it in how much they love our school, how much they love each other. There were over a thousand kids in that gym, and everybody was celebrating and hugging, dancing and supporting our kids who play fall sports, and our diversity. That doesn’t happen often in a lot of places, but it happens every single day at Cross.”
Cross cheerleaders get ready for the mannequin challenge.
Johnson said the vandalism doesn’t define Cross or the good work that goes on there every day.
“And of course we’re going to smash Hillhouse,” she added.
The students might borrow a line from Zay Hilfigerrr and Zayion McCall, the creators of “Ju Ju On That Beat” to tell the vandals how they feel: “You ugly. You your daddy’s son!”
The author fails to note the the references to Trump were bilingual, profane insults of Trump. One might infer that the swastikas were also a way of calling Trump a NAZI, rather than promoting Naziism. The hate expressed in the graffiti, therefore, was not of Jews, or blacks, or any other ethnic group. The graffiti was a message of hate for our President-elect, and, by extension, those who supported him. The schools celebration of "diversity" appears to have done nothing to address this hate, or promote acceptance of Trump and his supporters. With less than 15% of New Haven's population, they are certainly a minority group.