Preschool closes, apologizes after blackface activity

NEWTON, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts Montessori preschool has shut down and apologized after a classroom full of toddlers painted black faces on paper plates and held them up to their own faces to celebrate Black History Month. ICKids in Newton in a statement posted on Facebook and on the school’s front door Sunday said the “curriculum was not executed or completed in the manner that it should have been, so we apologize.” The teacher who planned and executed the Feb. 8 activity was fired. Management said that because possible protests at the school could put children at risk, it was closing for the time being.