Last night, two Black school board members joined a white republican majority to deny the contract renewal of a Black superintendent.
Our community gave a previous white superintendent a $50k raise and a contract renewal after 3 years paying him over $300k while we had a multi year teacher pay freeze. Dr. Narcisse improved the scores, in some areas more than any district in the state. Last night they denied him his contract.
Let me be clear, I do not support Black leaders who show they cannot support Black leaders.
The Monday before Thanksgiving I reached out to school board member Carla Powell Lewis because I heard she had concerns renewing the contract. We met for over 2 hours. She expressed her concerns to Dr. Narcisse and he agreed with clear articulation how he would address her issues. She told me to my face that her concerns were addressed and she would be supportive of a contract renewal.
I don’t believe in blind loyalty. I also don’t believe we elect people to “vote their conscience” we elect you to vote the will of the people. The Will of the majority of Black people in this community has been to keep him, because we literally just got score improvements. If I support you to get elected and you lack the courage to take hard votes that advance Black people, I will attempt to address it privately. Some leaders think accountability is an attack. It is not. It is what is required for our COLLECTIVE advancement.
The last time I attended a school board member we had a Black member who did the exact same thing. Sided with the white republicans majority. That person is no longer in office.
If a Black man improves the academic scores of the district he has met a major achievement of progress. This is the first time I’ve ever heard people say, “it was only a little growth.”
The district is over 80% Black in a city that is over 56% Black, has a 5-4 white republican majority. The board is working as hard as it can to hire someone that will scratch all their itches in order to keep his job. They proved last night it wasn’t about student growth, they don’t want a Black leader who doesn’t just cave to white pressure. Even if it’s led by Black people.
The reason Nipsey is getting all the love you see is not just bc of his music, & his entrepreneurial ventures, but also bc he shared what he knew/learned from a place of love & sincerity. To me he epitomized what a modern hip-hop figure should be. #TMC 🏁
How NFL Proved Even After Settling With Blackballed QB Colin Kaepernick For Millions It Would Rather Have 38 Year Old J.P. Losman Who Hasn’t Played Since 2011; Twitter Reacts https://t.co/0RNN0iltOf via @ctsportsradio
As a rookie with the 76ers in 2005-06, @TeamLou23 started his #NBA career learning from @alleniverson!
He became the all-time leader in points scored off the bench on Monday. #NBAVault