MANCHESTER, N.H. — Two high school students in Manchester, New Hampshire, are under scrutiny in response to a homecoming proposal shared on social media Thursday.
The proposal sign posted by the Trinity High School students has received local and national attention pointing out that the sign is racist.
Shared by the Black Lives Matter Manchester Instagram page, the sign reads, "If I was black, I would be picking cotton. But I’m white, so I’m picking you."
Trinity High School President Nathan Stanton issued a letter to the community in response to the incident on Friday.
According to the letter, the incident occurred off-campus and was reported before the end of the school day Thursday.
Stanton wrote he is working closely with the Catholic Schools Office, THS Advisory Board, and Administrative Team as they continue to respond to the incident.
"Privacy and student confidentiality concerns prevent me from sharing disciplinary actions that were taken, but I assure all of you that this or similar behavior is not tolerated or accepted by any member of our Trinity High School community," Stanton wrote in the letter.
Stanton added that "racial mockery" or "acts of racism" are "absolutely unacceptable."
In an updated release issued on Saturday, David Thibault, the superintendent of Catholic Schools for the Diocese of Manchester, aimed to dispel rumors surrounding actions taken in response to Thursday's incident.
Thibault said the student is no longer to attend Trinity High School.
"There is a viral narrative surrounding the disciplinary action purportedly imposed on the student which has been circulating. This narrative is baseless. The rumor of a 'one day suspension' and allowance of the student to continue his participation in athletics is simply not accurate, and it never has been. The Trinity administration took action within a matter of hours of receiving an internal report of this image. Issues surrounding privacy prevent us from providing certain student information, however, the young person is no longer a student at Trinity High School."
The letter issued on Friday continued to explain that the school has received threats from outside the THS community following Thursday's incident.
"Out of an abundance of caution for the physical safety of all members of our school community, all athletic events originally scheduled for this weekend will be postponed," the letter wrote.
The Arch Diocese of Manchester, New Hampshire told NEWS CENTER Maine the homecoming dance and game for next weekend are still scheduled.