Texas teacher suspended after racist Ferguson tweet
A Texas teacher has been "suspended without pay pending
discharge" after accusations that she sent racially charged tweets about
the incidents in Ferguson, Missouri, a representative for the Duncanville
Independent School District said at a press conference. Vinita Hegwood, a high
school English teacher at Duncanville High School near Dallas, allegedly sent
the tweets from her personal Twitter account Friday. "Who the (expletive)
made you dumb (expletive) crackers think I give a squat (expletive) about your
opinions. #Ferguson Kill yourselves," read one of the messages. Later that
evening another tweet appeared, saying, "You exhibit nigga behavior, I'm a
call you a nigga. You acting crackerish, I'm a call you a cracker."
Hegwood is African-American It's not clear exactly to what or whom she was
referring, but the protests in Ferguson, Missouri, have often hinged on race,
as Michael Brown was a black teen killed by Officer Darren Wilson, a white
policeman. A grand jury
expected to decide soon whether Wilson
will face charges. Hegwood is in her second year at Duncanville High School,
where she maintained a website for her students. The Twitter account from which
she allegedly made the comments has since been taken down. Hegwood did not
immediately respond to CNN's calls and emails seeking comment. Lari Barager,
Duncanville Independent School District spokeswoman, called the messages
"offensive" and "reprehensible" and stressed the tweets do
not represent the 240 other teachers at Duncanville High School. The swiftness
and severity with which administrators acted demonstrate how seriously they
view the incident, Barager said. It's rare to be suspended without pay, the
fullest disciplinary action allowed under district policy, she said. Hegwood
began meeting with administrators Monday at 7:15 a.m. By 8:30 a.m., "there
was a conclusion and this decision had been made," Barager said. District
employees do have the right to free speech, Barager said, but Hegwood's
comments were so egregious, the school was left with "no other
option." Hegwood's tweets are the latest example of the percolating
tensions and controversy that have spread beyond the Ferguson city limits in
the aftermath of the Brown shooting.
Why are some people teachers.
ReplyDeleteUnder no circumstances, should anyone display racism, but especially linked to an event that is centralized around a man being killed due to his race. Teachers exhibit the knowledge of this country by distributing wisdom and educating the future. Tweeting racist remarks as an educator is completely the opposite of what teachers should be doing. She is only reverting the race situation rather than helping to ameliorate it. (Elizabeth Muscari 6th period)
ReplyDeleteAdults tell us all the time to be careful what we put on the internet because what ever we display to the world, we are setting ourselves up for the kind of responses people will enact. Since the teacher was not careful in the matter at which she posted, she will have to live with her consequences.
ReplyDeleteMaddie Murphy
Pd 6