I am absolutely outraged about yesterday's front page BeloJo story about a racial slur used by Ralph Papitto, the outgoing chairman of the board of trustees at Roger Williams University after whom the law is named. First, I am outraged that he said it and that, according to university president Roy Nirschel, it may not have been the first time. Second, I am outraged that the whistle-blowers have been kicked off the board. Third, I am outraged that the University tried to cover it up with this press release from last week quoting Papitto's accomplishment of "the expansion of the board of trustees to include more international and diverse members." What a joke.
There's more below the fold....
Ralph R. Papitto, longtime chairman of the board of trustees at Roger Williams University and the man for whom its law school is named, stepped down Monday. The university said Papitto’s retirement was motivated by his age and his desire to spend more time with his family.
But a former trustee says Papitto, a board member for about 40 years and chairman for the last 18, was forced to resign after he uttered a racial slur at a May 2 trustees meeting. The trustee, along with two other trustees who demanded Papitto’s resignation, has since been removed from the board. She says they were terminated — two without explanation — as retaliation for pushing for Papitto’s removal.
Dr. Barbara H. Roberts, a trustee for two years and Papitto’s former cardiologist, said she decided to go public with Papitto’s conduct because of the gravity of the racist comment and her dismay at the way the trustees have handled the situation.
At the May 2 meeting, Roberts said, Papitto and the trustees were discussing a sternly worded report criticizing the board’s lack of diversity — of its 16 members, 14 are white men. Papitto became agitated, Roberts said, and used the word "n-----" while talking about diversifying the board.
Click here to keep reading the story.
Congratulations to Dr. Roberts for having the courage of her convictions in coming forward - even in the face of likely retaliation. Click here to read her letter demanding Papitto's resignation. I sincerely hope that the new Board chairman, Rick Bready, who has a distinguished record of community and political involvement, will do the right thing and put the 3 whistle-blowers - Roberts, Caramadre and Lapides - back on the Board of Trustees. Indeed, they have demonstrated one of the most vital qualifications for a University Trustee: a relentless commitment to truth. And Bready needs to show that his commitment to the University is stronger than his personal relationship with Papitto. Finally, I also hope that the law school which I attend - a school named after Papitto - will change its name to something more befitting of an institution of higher learning.
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Update 7/16: Law students like myself are gathering steam in demanding that Papitto's name be removed from the official name of the law school. We have over 40 supporters at our Facebook group and we will be issuing a press release later today.
Many of you probably heard Papitto on the John DePetro show this morning admitting to using the N-word, but saying that he has only used it once and that he had never heard it before hearing it on TV and, of course, in rap music. I am sure there are many people like him, who were born in the 1920s, who have never heard of that word before. Yeah, right.
The story has now been picked up by Inside Higher Ed and the Boston Globe.
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Update #2: RWU law school students just sent out this press release:
Contact: Matt Jerzyk (401) 556-7412
Majessire Smith (203) 610-0497
Kim Ahern (703) 346-5782
* ROGER WILLIAMS LAW STUDENTS DEMAND REMOVAL OF PAPITTO NAME *
PROVIDENCE & BRISTOL – Roger Williams Law students and law student organizations have expressed outrage at the behavior of outgoing chairman of the RWU Board of Trustees, Ralph R. Papitto and have demanded the removal of his name from the official name of the law school.
At 12noon today, Majessire Smith, the President of the Multi-cultural Law Student Association and Matt Jerzyk, the president of the American Constitution Society at the law school, sent out a memo calling on law school students to sign a petition demanding the removal of the Papitto name.
The petition reads, "Chairman of the RWU Board of Trustees, Ralph R. Papitto, recently used the "N" word at a trustees meeting. Sadly, he used the word during a discussion of the need to diversify the board. This is one more incident in what seems to have become a national epidemic of racist and bigoted speech. In light of his comments reported in the Providence Journal and the chairman’s admission of his actions on WPRO 630am this morning (John DePetro show), we are demanding that the name of Ralph R. Papitto be removed from the official name of the law school at Roger Williams University.
We should be proud of the name of our school. Instead, we are now reminded daily of a man whose repulsion of diversity is shameful. We are sure that many of you have received the same phone calls from family, friends and colleagues who heard the news and are asking, "What kind of school do you go to?" The only proper response to that question is swift action to assert that our law school does not condone racism or bigotry and that we will fight for a fair and just learning environment for students from all backgrounds."
Jerzyk says, "In just two short hours after Majessire and I emailed our memo to the law school email list, we have received over 85 student signatories to our petition demanding the removal of the Papitto name. In our small law school, the response has been powerful. This is a clear message to the University administration that students will not tolerate racism and bigotry in their institution of higher learning."
Smith concurs, "This is about taking a stand against ignorance and bigotry. We will not sit idly by. The law school community is outraged and this type of speech will not be tolerated."
"Several people emailed me," said Jerzyk, "that it will be a disgrace to have the Papitto name on their resumes and their diplomas. It will be a stain on their careers for the rest of their lives. We hope that the law school administration and the University leadership will do the right thing and immediately remove the Papitto."
Ahern, the president of the Gay and Lesbian alliance says, "The Alliance is voicing it’s disapproval of former Chairman Papitto’s appalling and derogatory remarks because any use of this word on any part of our campus simply cannot be tolerated by an institution deemed reputable for "higher learning and civil discourse."
Smith adds that, "We will continue to circulate the petition until 5:00 pm tomorrow so that students have more than 24 hours to respond. Then, we will address it to the President of the University and Dean of the law school and await their response."
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The ProJo has updated their story here. And the Philadelphia Daily News has the story. Along with the Chronicle for Higher Education, South Coast Today, Forbes, the San Jose Mercury News and more.
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Update #3: Today, I spoke with the BeloJo, WHJJ, WRNI and Channel 10 NBC about law students' demand for the removal of the Papitto name. I will also be discussing this story on the John DePetro Show tomorrow morning on 630am during the 9 o'clock hour. Further, I am happy to report by the close of the day today, we have over 120 law students on our petition.
Also, I would like to express my disgust (once again) at talk radio host Dan Yorke who spent a good portion of his show today defending Papitto and saying essentially, 'hey, what's the big deal.' While Yorke often seems quite normal in his political analysis, it is moments like these when we are all starkly reminded that he is just as much a right-wing, conservative as Bill O'Reilly and Rush Limbaugh.
Finally, I would like to point out that I have received reports that Papitto has actually personally given $0 to the law school and that he did not "purchase" the naming rights to the law school. I have heard that it was a simple board resolution in 1996 that changed the name of the law school. Of course, students protested the name change a decade ago for several reasons, including the fact that Papitto is not even a lawyer. Thus, it would only take a simple board resolution to remove Papitto's name.