Public input wanted after teacher reportedly utters N-word in class
An emergency town hall meeting is giving people the opportunity to weigh in on how the community should respond to an incident which saw a Windsor teacher reportedly use a racist slur twice in front of students.
“There's a lot of anti-Black racism practised in all of the schools that is not dealt with in a way that leaves our children harmed in some ways,” said Leslie McCurdy, chair of the Black Council of Windsor-Essex.
Earlier this month, students spoke out after they said a teacher at Kennedy Collegiate said the N-word in class.
The teacher is said to have been expressing disapproval over the word's use in a song being played in the classroom by students.
According to students, the teacher used the word again during a separate meeting about the original incident.
“In terms of equitable treatment, the teacher should've been suspended for a day just like a student would have been suspended for a day,” said McCurdy.
The incident prompted the council to call an “emergency town hall” Saturday afternoon over Zoom where the public was invited to suggest next steps for how “people in power” and the general community should respond to the incident and seek accountability.
But, according to the council, the call-to action goes far beyond the incident at Kennedy Collegiate.
“It's a very complicated issue, the N-word, its historic use and the duality of the use that exists within the Black community and the fact that we in the Black community request that it not be used by anyone else in any way,” added McCurdy.
The Black Council is calling for the teacher to make a public apology and briefly step away from teaching to reflect on the impact of uttering the racial slur.
“Yes, Black people use the word sometimes, but we have received the same kind of cultural conditioning as everyone else,” said McCurdy.
“For any person who is non-melanated to say that word in any capacity is wrong.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
'It was joy': Trapped B.C. orca calf eats seal meat, putting rescue on hold
A rescue operation for an orca calf trapped in a remote tidal lagoon off Vancouver Island has been put on hold after it started eating seal meat thrown in the water for what is believed to be the first time.
Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
Sask. father found guilty of withholding daughter to prevent her from getting COVID-19 vaccine
Michael Gordon Jackson, a Saskatchewan man accused of abducting his daughter to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, has been found guilty for contravention of a custody order.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
B.C. judge orders shared dog custody for exes who both 'clearly love Stella'
In a first-of-its-kind ruling, a B.C. judge has awarded a former couple joint custody of their dog.
Saskatoon police to search landfill for remains of woman missing since 2020
Saskatoon police say they will begin searching the city’s landfill for the remains of Mackenzie Lee Trottier, who has been missing for more than three years.
Shivering for health: The myths and truths of ice baths explained
In a climate of social media-endorsed wellness rituals, plunging into cold water has promised to aid muscle recovery, enhance mental health and support immune system function. But the evidence of such benefits sits on thin ice, according to researchers.