Columbia Heights students standing up against racism.
Grant Nichols is a Columbia Heights School Board member and on September 6th, he posted an outrageously offensive comment via Facebook on a
Minneapolis Star Tribune article (screen grab of the now deleted comment can be seen below.)
Screen grab of offensive comment from the Facebook account of Grant Nichols.
Students got wind of the comment and immediately took action, going before the school board and demanding that he be censured and/or fired. The school board declined,
prompting a protest:
Hundreds of students walked out of class Wednesday morning at Columbia Heights High School to protest a vote that allows a school board member to keep his seat after he allegedly posted a racially charged comment about Muslims on his Facebook account.
Students staged the walkout just hours after one of his colleagues voted against a motion Monday night to remove Grant Nichols from the school board. A unanimous vote is required to remove a board member.
For his part, Grant Nichols has an unbelievably
juvenile defense of the post:
Last week he said he suspected someone at his workplace used his phone to write the Facebook post. He also said he disagreed with the content of the comment.
However, John Larkin, the chair of the Columbia Heights School Board, countered that claim, saying Nichols told him he had written the post.
One school board member defended the vote not to punish or fire Nichols, saying he had "learned his lesson." Columbia Heights High School Principal Dan Wrobleski is
sticking with his kids:
Columbia Heights High School Principal Dan Wrobleski said he couldn't comment on the school board politics that allowed Nichols to keep his seat, but said he was personally appalled at the Facebook post and the racism and cultural insensitivity it reflects. "It breaks my heart," Wrobleski told reporters gathered outside the school. "I support my students. A school official making those comments? We need to eradicate prejudices across our nation and today was a start at Columbia Heights High School."
Wrobeski met with staff members Wednesday morning and decided that there would be no discipline for students who walked out in protest. Staff members stood watch so students wouldn't leave campus, and everyone walked back into the building after 30 minutes of peaceful protest.
Jump below the fold to see the students commenting at the school board meeting, noting that if any one of them had made similar comments, they would've been suspended or expelled for cyberbullying.
Stay tuned....these students aren't giving up without a fight.