More than 11K sign petition to reinstate teachers suspended for dressing as Trump border wall

More than 11,000 people have signed a petition to reinstate the two dozen staffers suspended from a Idaho elementary school for dressing up as President Trump’s border wall and Mexican stereotypes including sombreros and maracas.

Fourteen staffers were placed on administrative leave by the Middleton School District on Saturday morning after facing backlash for the Halloween costumes, The Idaho Statesman reported Sunday.

More than 11,500 people as of early Monday afternoon have signed a petition on Change.org to reinstate them.

The newspaper noted that it is unclear whether the signatures are coming from Middleton parents.

{mosads}Since-deleted pictures showed teachers at Middleton Heights Elementary School, near Boise, dressed as segments of a border wall with Trump’s campaign slogan “Make America Great Again.”

Another group wore brightly colored ponchos, sombreros and fake black mustaches, which some parents deemed as racist.

Jacquelyn Meeker, who started the petition, wrote that the situation was “blown out of proportion, as this was a team building exercise done after school with no students present or involved.” 

Meeker told the newspaper that the petition was not about supporting the photos.

“We fully believe in our staff at Middleton Heights and don’t feel that this should cost the men and women involved their jobs and cause further stress to our children,” the petition states. “These men and women are a huge part of our children’s lives and the love and support they give them should not be overshadowed by what happened.”

A separate petition, titled “No Racism in Middleton School District,” had more than 9,600 signatures as of Monday morning.

It calls for protective training and awareness on “race, ethnicity and nationality issues.”

“The gross display of dehumanization of Latinx children and the outrageous harm caused by trusted adults that they learn from and look up to cannot be ignored and swept under the rug with a simple apology,” the Move On petition states. “More is required of the teachers and administrators to repair the harm caused to their students, to their community, and to Idaho.”

Superintendent Josh Middleton condemned the costumes on Saturday, saying they were “clearly insensitive and inappropriate.”

“We now have to own those decisions,” he said. “I’d just again want to share what’s going on and express my sincerest and deepest apologies to our families, to our patrons.”