On Thursday, The Daily Beast reported that a school board member in North Texas defended the controversial recent firing of a Black principal for writing a letter about the George Floyd murder, calling him one of several “activists” who are “poison” to the minds of teachers in the district.
Members of the community, however, were having none of it.
The suspension and then firing of Dr. James Whitfield as a principal in the Colleyville High School in the Grapevine-Colleyville School District last year, ostensibly over his promotion of “critical race theory,” became a nationwide controversy.
“Tammy Nakamura may be new to the Grapevine-Colleyville school board but that didn’t stop her from weighing in on Whitfield’s controversial departure during a gathering of school board members last month hosted by the Republican National Committee,” reported Brooke Leigh Howard.
“In a video of the event posted to the Colleyville Citizens for Accountability Facebook group on July 8, Nakamura is seen commenting on Whitfield’s departure. After alleging Whitfield brought national attention to the school district because he was married to a white woman, Nakamura said it was the principal’s supposedly woke agenda that led to his ouster,” said the report. “‘I went in last week and read the whole file,’ she said during the meeting. ‘That’s the straw that broke the camel’s back … that got him fired,’ Nakamura said, referring to the letter Whitfield sent to parents about targeting racism and hate, which she claimed showed an activist agenda. ‘There is absolute proof [of] what he was trying to do,’ she said.”
According to the report, however, Nakamura’s comments have triggered anger from locals.
“‘First, Tammy Harris Nakamura, your story is incoherent so it’s hard to follow your misguided claims,’ posted Amyn Gilani in the Colleyville Citizens for Accountability Facebook group,” said the report. “‘Second, Dr. James Whitfield was targeted because he addressed the murder of George Floyd and he made himself available to support all students who have questions and thoughts about inequality and injustice,’ Gilani wrote. ‘James is an asset to our community, not poison.'” Another resident, Karl Meek, wrote “Sounds like a 15th century attempt to prosecute an old world inquisition,'” while another accused Nakamura of trying to create “an employment hit list.”
“According to the Star-Telegram, Whitfield is on paid administrative leave until his resignation officially goes into effect in August 2023,” noted the report. “Neither Nakamura nor the Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District immediately returned requests for comment.”
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