by Al Rettig, ARCRA Board

        The only surprising thing about the ruckus over a racially insensitive Red Cross pool safety poster is that it was published in 2014 and it took until mid-2016 for somebody to notice that the white kids are "cool" and the minority kids are "not cool."

        When Margaret Sawyer saw the poster at two different pools in Colorado recently, she put an image of it online and pointed out the obvious racial bias to the NBC television station in Denver. Both social media and traditional media were quick to foment a flood of criticism.

        Red Cross president Gail McGovern quickly issued an unequivocal apology and expressed her disappointment that the poster was ever released. She said that the poster has been removed from the Red Cross website and swim app, that production has been discontinued and that swimming facilities have been asked to no longer display it. McGovern added, "We are currently in the process of completing a formal agreement with a diversity advocacy organization for their guidance. . ."