NAACP Florida State Conference calls for firing of teacher for using the “N” word

[JonLP24]

Source: The Westside Gazette

FORT WALTON BEACH, FL —The Florida State Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) calls on the Jackson County School Board to reconsider its recent decision to suspend and reassign Greg Howard, the teacher who repeatedly used the “N” word on a seventh grade classroom chalkboard to refer to the campaign of Sen. Barack Obama. Jackson County School Superintendent Danny Sims is wrong when he noted that Howard’s comments were directed at a political party and not at a particular group of students. The fact that, in the year 2008, a teacher hired to teach and lead young people used a word so reviled that the Jackson County Floridian deemed it unprintable is unfathomable; the fact that he retains a job in the school system at all, teaching young adults, is unacceptable.

“In this day and time when the “N” word is considered a racial slur and offensive to African Americans, I cannot understand how in the world this person can be allowed back into a classroom to contaminate vulnerable minds,” said Adora Obi Nweze, president of the Florida State Conference NAACP.

“As a tax payer in Jackson County, I am appalled because if the situation was reversed and a disparaging statement was made by an African American, there would be no doubt in my mind, he would have been fired,” stated Richard Patterson, president of the Jackson County Branch NAACP.

The word Howard used was not only clearly aimed at African American students and their community; it was aimed at all students seeking a tolerant, safe, racially diverse educational environment. Howard sent a clear message that racism and bigotry are acceptable in his classroom, not only to the African American students, but to white students. His actions, as a governmental employee, were not only offensive, they most likely violated the civil rights of the African American students who heard or read them. By choosing to merely discipline and reassign Howard, the school board essentially condones his comments and opens itself up to civil lawsuits as well. The Jackson County School Board must fire Greg Howard so that he can never again hurt students and create a hostile environment.


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