Feb. 18--MIDDLETOWN -- An unfortunate pairing of school lunch items at Middletown's middle and high schools on Tuesday -- the midpoint of Black History Month -- upset some black students.

The school served fried chicken and watermelon for lunch, along with mashed potatoes and other items, according to students. A photo of a lunch tray and discussion of the meal have been circulating on social media.

Derrick Phipps, a ninth-grader at the school who is black, said the school has been celebrating Black History Month all month, with his art teacher playing videos and the topic being taught in his English class.

When he got to lunch Tuesday, he said there was a combination of foods he had not been served together before: fried chicken and watermelon. Neither the menu nor school personnel explicitly associated the food selections with Black History Month, Phipps said, but he was still offended.

Not everyone agreed.

Nah Middletown high school did not have fried chicken and watermelon for a "Black History Month" lunch smh that's insane — Mayor Di99y (@RayCreez_) February 16, 2017

Fried chicken and watermelon have long been used as racist stereotypes against blacks, dating back to 19th century minstrel shows, racist propaganda and slavery.

District Superintendent Ken Eastwood said the combination of food items was coincidental. He said the district was trying to serve something red, the watermelon, to acknowledge Valentine's Day. He said he received three or four phone calls about the issue.

"There was no intent behind this," Eastwood said. "We have a long history of taking care of our minority population."

The school district is about 24 percent black, 54 percent Hispanic and 17 percent white.

Eastwood released a statement Friday evening that will be distributed to families in the district. It reads in part:

"Our food service department strives to provide a variety of healthy breakfast and lunch choices, and created a choice that some have deemed racially insensitive. We appreciate the open line of communication we enjoy with our school community and we understand your concerns. We in the Middletown school district embrace our diversity, as well as its history, and will use this as an educational opportunity. Please accept our apologies."

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By James Nani

The Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y.

(c)2017 The Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y.

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