The merciless killing of George Floyd launched protests affirming Black lives and prompted a public denunciation of racism across the globe. Due to the punitively unjust oppression of diverse populations, people of color and many of their white counterparts came together and took to the streets in protest. None of these actions would have happened if society had been more equitable toward people from diverse backgrounds.
As we all move forward, the Minnesota School Board Directors of Color (MNSBDOC) are committed to strengthening equity and inclusion in education, despite the hurdles that may threaten to prohibit that effort from moving forward.
By way of background on MNSBDOC, approximately one-third of the public-school pupils in Minnesota are students of color, according to a 2017 analysis by Minnesota Public Radio, while only 3% of directors are people of color. This large disparity led to the founding of MNSBDOC in 2016 by Helen Bassett and Abdi Sabrie, of Robbinsdale and Mankato, respectively.
Sabrie, the first person of color to serve on the Mankato school board, was looking for ways to connect with other board members of color who have had shared cultural experiences. Sabrie met with Bassett, a trailblazer on the Robbinsdale school board, who was elected in 2003. They formed an affinity group and joined with Latinx, Asian and Indigenous directors in 2017.
With the killing of George Floyd and the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with persistent divisiveness in America, angry discussions are firing up on social media. School districts have been feeling vilification from all sides of the political spectrum. Anger arises over many topics, both big and small.
Even those who side with us on issues of equity and inclusion have used social media to rail against districts' inability to make change at the speed of light. MNSBDOC acknowledges that people are hurting, that change is needed. Many MNSBDOC members have been working for years advocating for and influencing change.
There is nothing wrong with pushing a school board to do the right thing or to speed up its timetable. But this should be done via e-mails, phone calls and/or at board meetings, not through an airing of grievances in the social media echo chamber.
To continue with this inflammatory language from afar creates a toxicity that will prevent other people of color from wanting to take teaching or leadership positions, at the risk of being called a "sellout" or "Uncle Tom," and being perceived as merely placating those with power and privilege.