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A Texas school board member is facing outrage and calls for resignation following a racist rant he delivered at a recent meeting of the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District near Houston.
Scott Henry, a trustee on the school board, left attendees aghast with his response to a presentation by a diversity and inclusion consultant which reviewed the economic achievement disparities among racial and ethnic groups in the district.
Henry blamed the district's poorly performing students on Black teachers, mocked the school system's diversity efforts and claimed the diversity consultant's data was dishonest.
See his comments below.
As outlined by Onika Mayers, the diversity and inclusion consultant who addressed the meeting, students of color and those from disadvantaged backgrounds in the Cypress-Fairbanks district fall short of several academic markers, including English language skills, and have disproportionately higher rates of suspension.
Mayers attributed those outcomes in part to the fact that Cypress-Fairbanks students of color have very few faculty and teaching staff they can identify with given that the district's staff is predominately white.
Given the scores of studies across decades that have shown these patterns are extremely common and consistent in American schools, Mayers' findings shouldn't have been much of a surprise. But Henry wasn't buying it. He called Mayers' analysis "a pile of rubbish" and claimed her painstakingly collected data was unreliable. As he put it:
“I’m a big data guy, so I know data. Data can be skewed any way you want it to."
Henry then provided his own explanation for the disparities in achievement among students of color that was downright shocking.
“Do you know what the statewide percent is for Black teachers? Ten percent."
"Houston [Independent School District], which I'll use to shine an example, you know what their average percentage of Black teachers is? Thirty-six percent. I looked that up."
"You know what their dropout rate is? Four percent."
"I don't want to be 4 percent… I want to be the premium place where people go to be.”
Henry's statements enraged many in the Houston area, from prominent local political leaders to parents of school-age children, many of whom took to Twitter to condemn his racist screed and call for his resignation.
As a product of Cy-Fair ISD, I\u2019m appalled by Board Member Scott Henry\u2019s insinuation that more Black teachers lead to more dropouts.\n\nDivisiveness and racism are\u00a0what\u2019s hurting our students. Not diversity.\u00a0\n\nResign.pic.twitter.com/Rmv514MA0A— Lina Hidalgo (@Lina Hidalgo) 1642013363
The denial of structural racism abets further racism.\n\n@CyFairISD School Board Trustee Scott Henry\u2019s suggestion that the presence of more Black teachers correlates to a higher dropout rate in any district is false and racist. Our teachers and students deserve better.https://twitter.com/ehanks2208/status/1481269231870267394\u00a0\u2026— ACLU of Texas (@ACLU of Texas) 1642033660
I was deeply saddened and offended to hear the comments made by @CyFairISD School District Board Member Scott Henry. His comments are unacceptable, and I recommend that he resign immediately. (1/3) st #hounewspic.twitter.com/fBI8GMP6Of— Sylvester Turner (@Sylvester Turner) 1642031487
This racist Texas #CyFair school board member just said that more Black teachers leads to worse student outcomes.\n\nHe must resign. And be called out. And maybe sued. \n\n@NAACP_LDF @ACLUTx @miyashay @EricaGrieder @ChronFalkenberg @JoyAnnReid @chrislhayes @MomsAGAbbott @JasmineForUSpic.twitter.com/FgPFtPAre4— Demanding Liz (@Demanding Liz) 1641997080
Scott Henry is a newly elected school board member in Cypress, Texas. \n\nHe\u2019s out there saying Black teachers lead to worse student performance. Fwiw\u2026https://twitter.com/ehanks2208/status/1481269231870267394\u00a0\u2026— Rex Chapman\ud83c\udfc7\ud83c\udffc (@Rex Chapman\ud83c\udfc7\ud83c\udffc) 1642017625
.@SaHenry There is no correlation between Black teachers and the drop out rate. Never has been; never will be. Insinuations like these are devaluing to the miracles Black educators work every single day and makes for a hostile work environment. #CyFair @CyFairISD @HAABSE3https://twitter.com/ehanks2208/status/1481269231870267394\u00a0\u2026— April Young \ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\udde6 (@April Young \ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\udde6) 1642033509
Scott Henry should resign. #CyFair deserves elected officials who don\u2019t espouse racist viewshttps://twitter.com/ehanks2208/status/1481269231870267394\u00a0\u2026— Ben Chou \u5468\u6d69\u6069 he/him (@Ben Chou \u5468\u6d69\u6069 he/him) 1642001670
Scott Henry needs to step down. Apologizing isn't enough. His attack on Black teachers is unforgivable and will create a hostile environment in the school district as long as he remains.https://twitter.com/sylvesterturner/status/1481413546235904006\u00a0\u2026— Matthew Chapman (@Matthew Chapman) 1642176222
This man @sahenry is proof that every election matters from president down to the local dog catcher. \n\nThis racist trash should not be allowed on a school board.https://twitter.com/miyashay/status/1481284143858307073\u00a0\u2026— Amanda O \ud83d\udc9b (@Amanda O \ud83d\udc9b) 1642010250
R u blaming black teachers for drop out rates WHILE asserting that black students aren't worth investing in? My black daughter isn't safe in CFISD. Racism ON D.I.S.P.L.A.Y @CyFairISD\nBoard Meeting.\nResign, Mr. Scott Henry. You are a racist stain on the district.https://twitter.com/miyashay/status/1481284143858307073\u00a0\u2026— Krispy Krunch (@Krispy Krunch) 1642004577
Henry issued a statement on Twitter in his own defense, claiming his statements had been taken out of context. He has since deleted his Twitter account entirely.