‘We have yet to see the transformational change we need …’
A group of Clayton parents — Laurie Anzilotti, Andrea Denny, Laura Horwitz, Lori Markson, Betsy Meyland-Smith, Becky Patel, Pam Washington and Suzanne Whitman — initiated a petition drive demanding adoption of anti-biast/anti-racism (ABAR) practices in the district during the upcoming school year. Here the parents jointly address a few questions posed by Richard Weiss about their effort.
Weiss: What’s the rush? Some will ask why not let the district get its bearings when it comes to getting school open, rather than imposing demands with deadlines with the first coming in September?
Parents: The School District of Clayton Strategic Plan is scheduled to be presented and reviewed in August and we’ve been told we can expect to see ABAR addressed in it. The district’s response to the COVID crisis showed us how quickly they can take action when they prioritize it and demonstrates how quickly they can and should respond to the crisis of racism.
Weiss: Were you gratified or disappointed with superintendent Sean Doherty’s response to the petition. Do you feel like he has closed the gap between what the district has done and is doing and what your group has proposed?
Parents: We are cautiously optimistic as we trust he has the heart for the work, and he has started to demonstrate the actions the district is taking to address racism. We hope to see an unflinching boldness as a result of the outpouring of community support, which we know the superintendent values. Update: Doherty will step down as superintendent at the end of the school year.
Weiss: The organizers are made up of moms, all white except for one, who is African-American. How did you all come together to do this? From what I have been able to learn about all of you is that this is not your first racial equity “rodeo.” Is that the strongest common denominator? Why no dads, or more African-Americans as organizers? You have more than 600 signers on your petition. That seems like a lot of people overall for a district with a student enrollment of about 2,700. Have you noticed any particular demographic trends among the signers … older, younger, male/female, more parents than others?
Parents:: We joined together as neighbors supporting one another in being present at protests for Black Lives this summer, including the two marches held in Clayton both organized by students. We began reflecting on the students’ demands for changes, and a recent alumni petition asking that a racist bullying incident from several years ago be recognized and rectified, and realized that each of us have been involved in equity efforts in the district, but have yet to see the transformational change we need and of which we know our district is capable.
After drafting our thoughts we shared this letter with about 20 staff, parents, community members and alumni to make sure this petition reflected many perspectives and gave primacy to the voices of Black families and teachers of color. We then shared the petition with administrative leadership and the entire Board of Education before publicly asking for community support.Petition signers represent all six school building communities, from Pre-K to 12. They include parents, alumni, students, staff, and community members.
Weiss: What’s the next step in terms of holding the school district accountable? How will you be accountable to the people who signed the petition?
Parents: We intend the petition to serve as a sign of both support and accountability for what our superintendent wants to do this year. We plan to stay in communication with the petition signers to encourage them to engage with district admininstration, the Board Of Education, and each other, to support and demand change and create the transformation required to reduce racist harm to students.
