Ignorance, innuendo and the school board
By Demetrious Johnson
Guest Columnist
With the Board of Education elections only weeks away, members of the board minority (Veronica O’Brien and William Purdy), bolstered by the support of board hopeful Peter Downs, have ramped up the ignorance and innuendo that have become their trademark.
They are certainly not looking out for the best interest of St. Louis’ children.
The St. Louis Public Schools have long been about the creation of jobs for adults rather than the education of children. The district has long been the vehicle for friendless people to try to gain the acceptance they were denied in adolescence. They are doing a disservice to our children by diverting attention from the real work of education.
It seems unethical and perhaps illegal for board members to feed information to their pals prior to it becoming public information at their board meetings. Case in point: how did Peter Downs acquire information regarding the district’s desire to bring proven San Francisco Superintendent Arlene Ackerman in to serve as education advisor?
Downs sent this information out in a mass email BEFORE the board held its meeting on March 7. How did he get this information? From Bill Purdy? Purdy comes across as if he is your friend, saying all the right things, pretending that he has your back, only to be stabbing you in the back.
He came on my radio show and said, “I support Dr. Williams. I believe in what he is doing.” What a joke! The only person’s back he’s had for years is Gant. You know what I mean, and you don’t want to go there.
During her election campaign, Veronica O’Brien was quoted as saying that her top priority was to find a new superintendent. Now, it seems her top priority is to make a spectacle of herself. She has a long history of speaking out of turn and making ignorant comments.
Purdy and O’Brien have no justifiable reason to serve as advocates for children. If the people who voted for them knew the shenanigans they pull, I am sure they would never have voted for them nor would they vote for their cronies. It is a shame that they have convinced a small segment of our community that they care about children.
All of you, as citizens, should attend the board meetings to see for yourselves, if you have any doubt, go witness the grandstanding and ignorance of these board members. They go to the Lizz Brown show so they can continue their efforts to sabotage what Dr. Williams is trying to do for kids. How dare they claim to represent us and support the likes of Peter Downs?
We need to take back control over our schools, stop letting people tell us what is right for us, and measure what one person is doing to make a difference in the lives of our children. Look at what Williams is doing, in spite of all the back-stabbing, underhanded behavior and lies.