‘White Graduates Only’ Party Causes Outrage In Louisiana

A “white graduates only” part at a class reunion in Louisiana is sparking outrage after an invitation was leaked online, leading even the school’s principal to speak out against the event.

The segregated class reunion event is part of a longstanding tradition at St. Martinville, Louisiana Senior High School, The Huffington Post reported. For the past 40 years, graduates have held separate class reunion functions for black and white students, but this year graduates had decided to change the tradition.

Though this year was supposed to be the first integrated class reunion, the “white graduates only” invitation was still sent, KATC reported. Liza Chance, one of the event’s organizers, said a postgame party was originally listed on the schedule of events as only for whites, but, though it was changed, an earlier version of the schedule was sent out by mistake.

St. Martinville Senior High School Principal Michael Kreamer said he started fielding phone calls early on Friday from people outrages at the “white graduates only” event.

“I’m just a little disappointed that something like this comes up,” Kreamer said. “I don’t think that it looks good for the school, but again as I said it has nothing to do with St. Martinville Senior High. So I hope people don’t take that the wrong way.”

The invitation has also drawn a number of angry responses to KATC.

“I can’t think of an intelligent person I know who would ever think it was okay to write or plan anything exclusively for ‘White People,'” one commenter to the news site wrote.

The “white graduates only” event was supposed to be at the home of a classmate, whose name is covered in a version of the schedule released to the media. Attendees were asked to bring a dish to pass.