The Student Council met today to discuss a motion to demand that the optional student laundry service, Your Little Prince Wash And Fold Service, be discontinued.
Students pointed out that the high cost was prohibitive to more than half the student body, and created a divisive culture of privilege in the dorms. It was noted that the name of the company was itself offensive, setting up the expectation that boys don’t have to do laundry, and that the richer kids were the royalty of the school.
The Faculty Advisor to the Student Council volunteered that he had heard that over 80% of the kids who received laundry service were boys, and instantly regretted having spoken up. A freshman pointed out that the uniformed staff from Your Little Prince were all people of color, which set up a dynamic of rich white kids waited on by less privileged black adults, which he found very uncomfortable as a black student. A senior countered that discontinuing the laundry option would mean some people of color might lose their jobs.
It was noted that the senior was wearing a perfectly pressed shirt, probably the result of Your Little Prince’s services.
Once again speaking in haste, the Faculty Advisor told the increasingly agitated group that no dorm faculty could afford Your Little Prince laundry services, and it made teachers feel like second-class citizens. The Vice President of the Student Council, Thurston Howell the VII, said he knew from his father, who is on the Board of Trustees, that Richard E Rich Academy receives a sizeable annual commission from Your Little Prince, and it was highly unlikely that the school would give up that revenue source over social justice issues. Howell also immediately regretted speaking up, and he tried to compensate by suggesting a sheet burning protest.
At this point, the Faculty Advisor was obliged to shut down the meeting before things got out of control.