A Washington, DC educator is going viral after sharing an email she sent to her former fourth-grade art teacher, describing what she says were years of feeling singled out in the classroom.
In a TikTok video, the teacher, Christina (@sudiechristina), reflects on her experience as a student and explains why she decided to reach out years later. She says the interaction left a lasting impression on her, ultimately influencing her own path into education.
In this video, she shares an email she sent to her former fourth-grade art teacher, whom she feels had singled her out for being the only black child in the classroom.
She goes on to describe a situation that occurred nearly every class, in which four kids were chosen to create a crayon if they displayed good behavior and good art. Instead of getting the same opportunity as everyone else, she alleges that she had never been selected, even after making it known that she wouldn’t be able to do it the following year, as she was moving to another state.
More specifically, Christina wrote, “On the last day of school, we had art. What a coincidence. I still did not get picked. I walked up to you, and I said, ‘I never got to make a crayon this year, and today is the last day of school.’ You said, ‘Oh well, you can just do it next year.’ My response, ‘But I’m moving to Virginia next year. You didn’t even say anything back. You just looked at me and turned your back.“
The rest of the email talks about how Christina used this microaggression to fuel her own passion for teaching. She went on to attend college on an academic scholarship for softball and graduated magna cum laude, among a long list of other achievements.
Washington DC Teacher Emails Former Teacher About Her Experiences In Her Class
Commenters were quick to condemn Christina’s former art teacher, making comments such as, “[Expletive] that teacher,” and “You are ABSOLUTELY CORRECT!!!!! I will be 40 this year and have never and will NEVER forget my racist piece of [expletive] first grade teacher Mrs. Hertzel!!!“
Other commenters were proud of this teacher for her actions, with one person saying, “Glad u sent that email. She remembers you.” Since this video was posted, the former art teacher has reportedly responded to Christina’s email, saying, “I am so sorry that this has been on your heart all these years. I breaks my heart to think I made you feel this way—I hope you can forgive me for making you feel this way. The crayon reward did not stay, it was a time management nightmare.“
The internet was very supportive of Christina’s email, and it is hoped that she does not have to experience anything like this ever again in her professional life.
