An employee of a school in the US has been suspended after showing up on campus in blackface.

It happened last week at Mabel Rush Elementary School on the outskirts of Portland, Oregon, the Newberg Public School District said on Monday.

The employee was “removed from the location” before being placed on administrative leave.

Local reports said the staff member wore the blackface in an attempt to evoke the memory of civil rights icon Rosa Parks.

The move was also reportedly in protest at a state government mandate requiring all public school employees in Oregon to be fully vaccinated by 18 October.

The school district said in a statement: “The administration of Newberg Public Schools condemns all expressions of racism.

“It is important to remember how blackface has been used to misrepresent black communities and do harm.

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The school district added that it acknowledges the “violence” and “trauma” blackface represents regardless of the intention.

“Blackface has no place in our schools, and we are committed to the work of created spaces where every student belongs as we move forward together in our mission of educating students,” the district said.

A spokeswoman for the Oregon School Employees’ Association, the largest union for support staff members at state public schools, said she was not aware of the incident.

Gregg Koskela, communications coordinator for Newberg Public Schools, would not confirm whether the blackface was worn to protest against the vaccination mandate.

“The district has no comment on any motivation of the employee,” Mr Koskela said.

“The incident itself is unacceptable on our campuses, and the action matters far more than any intention.”

It came in the same week revelations emerged that Newberg High School students were joking about how much they would pay to own black classmates.

The school board is also considering a ban on any political symbols, such as gay pride flags or visible support for Black Lives Matter.

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