(ABC 6 News) – The Rochester NAACP organized another town hall to continue the conversation of racism in wake of the racial slur posted on the pedestrian bridge near Century High School.

We’ve heard from community and city leaders about how that racial slur has impacted the community, but tonight was a chance to let students have their voices heard.

That’s what the town hall was all about.

“I was really disappointed, just that the fact that they had the courage to put that out there and just bash a lot of people,” Mayo High School senior Diana Ontiveros Coronado said.

“It was very nice to be able to speak up and know that these people were actually listening but it was also very nice to be able to hear from like not only just people within our community but also teachers within these schools,” Rochester ALC sophomore Najmo Khalif said.

A panel of RPS students spoke out on the racial slur posted on the bridge and even talked about their own personal challenges they face throughout their school life.

“When I got to middle school people would say comments like why do you have your hair out, you look like a terrorist now, you should take your hijab and wipe it and use it as a mop,” Century High School junior Kadra Awad said.

The gathering allowed for a safe space to speak out on racism and how to address it in schools.

When asked how to make students of color more comfortable in school, one key answer was representation from staff.

They would also like to see an expansion of education on minority figures.

“The only units with African Americans is just slavery and I feel like there’s more to the community than just that part of our history,” Mayo High School senior Medena Meka said.

The discussion led to teachers asking what they could do to support minority students.

“Maybe you guys could have like culture days in your classrooms and maybe all the students could come in their cultural attire,” Meka said.

After speaking out on these issues and engaging with the community, these concerned students said they were relieved and hope the conversations continue in the future.

“I think something that we can do is to keep on having these type of events, and people might say, oh they’re going to get tired of you complain, but it’s not complaining, it’s just trying to shed light on things that are happening,” Awad said.

After hearing from students about their experiences with racism, it allowed teachers and the district to reflect on how they’re dealing with it and what to do in the future.

This is something they believe should be an ongoing discussion and that it shouldn’t take a heinous act to start the conversation.