Saratoga High School students on Monday held an anti-racism rally with parents and teachers days after a doll with dark complexion was found hanging by a noose in the school's main quad.
The school district believes the incident happened at night on Friday, Nov. 11. New surveillance photos show what the district is calling two persons of interest.
"We don’t know who the perpetrator is, but it had a very strong impact on our community regardless," Saratoga High School senior Shreya Rallabandi said.
The dolls and nooses were also found at Prospect High School and at Redwood Middle School.
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"Our goal right now is to make sure people understand that just because racism doesn’t affect you personally in this community doesn’t mean that you don’t have to take action when you see that something is wrong," Saratoga High School junior Sarah Thomas said.
The district sent an alert to parents, denouncing the act.
The sheriff's department, which is investigating it as a hate crime, issued a statement saying, "Hate has no place in Santa Clara County. The Sheriff’s Office will thoroughly investigate these incidents and request prosecution of the offenders to the fullest extent of the law."
Students said the discovery shook the school but prompted them to address racism and encourage unity.
"It’s our job to sort of call it out and really take the next steps forward to suppress that and just sort of build a community of allies, in which we’re here for each other," Saratoga High School senior Zachary Zinman said.
"Everyone has a responsibility to make sure that racism has no place on this campus," Thomas added.
