A Black substitute teacher in North Carolina experienced the shock of his life when another teacher interrogated him while using the restroom, proof that racism is beyond just words but in actions as well. Obviously offended by the encounter, the substitute teacher confronted his interrogator in the hallway. The video posted on X (formerly Twitter) identified the school as J.H. Rose High School in Greenville and showed the exchange.
Other teachers joined the conversation, and a White female teacher stepped in to defend the male teacher who approached the substitute staff. “Alright, this is a person who works here; he’s a professional. He is not somebody that we question like this. We don’t treat people like this,” she stated. “I was just asking,” the man said, shrugging. “He was just verifying,” the woman added. The substitute teacher asked whether the other teachers thought that was “weird.” Hesitating a bit, the woman tried to justify the teacher’s actions, saying she didn’t know it was crazy.
“I am in bathrooms with other individuals all the time,” she explained. “Did you shut the door?… People are behind you, right? When you walk in and out? Aren’t people behind you?” she rationalized. Concluding there was no point in continuing the conversation, the substitute teacher turned to the man who had questioned him in the restroom and demanded his name.
“Please stop recording me,” he said, putting his hand up and walking away. Many people flooded the comment section criticizing the white teacher’s actions. “Racists don’t know boundaries,” one stated bluntly. “Some of you are just weirdos. Men don’t even look at each other in the restrooms, let alone hover over someone. If there’s a concern, address it when he’s finished. Standing over someone when they’re [expletive] is an authoritarian move,” another noted.
A few were more concerned with the teachers who were defending him. “She’s being obtuse, it’s absolutely odd for a man to stand behind a man and question him at a urinal, especially when he’s already told you he works there,” one wrote. “All of them are racist… the attempt to rationalize hate pisses me off,” another stated before adding, “For all the women out there, dudes DO NOT stand directly behind another dude while [expletive]. That is not a thing….”
A TikToker joked, “White teacher upset he forgot to put up the ‘white staff only’ sign at the bathroom.” One admitted, “I would feel a bit uncomfortable with a large man standing behind me, questioning what I’m doing while I’m trying to take a piss. Maybe wait outside, introduce yourself and have a conversation like a normal person?” A user pointed out bigger issues, “A Black substitute teacher being interrogated in the restroom by a white colleague isn’t oversight– it’s humiliation. Questioning his right to use the staff facility while he’s [expletive] is not just disrespect, it’s racism. Schools should be places of dignity, not degradation.”
