CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A North Carolina school district acknowledged Wednesday that it sent home a “poorly worded” letter asking children to dress in “African American attire” or animal prints to celebrate Black History Month.

The letter went home with a group of children from Western Union Elementary School in advance of the school’s Feb. 28 celebration, according to the Charlotte Observer.

The letter suggested that if students didn’t have “African American attire,” they could wear animal-print clothing or shirts with zebras, elephants or giraffes on them.

A popular gay rights blog, Unicornbooty.com, posted a photograph of the letter on Tuesday, igniting an uproar online, according to WSOC-TV Channel 9 in Charlotte. 

In a statement, Union County Public Schools’ Chief Communications Officer Luan Ingram said the letter “while it was well-intended, it was poorly worded. We are reminding all of our principals to be very sensitive in word choices when communicating with parents concerning different ethnic groups and cultures that make up our world.”

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