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Citing a “veiled threat” from a “white conservative group,” organizers have canceled an upcoming meeting to discuss desegregation efforts with families of Black Hoover City Schools students.
“Since this meeting was designed to permit the superintendent to hear the concerns of Black parents about the treatment of Black kids and Black administrators in the system, I did not feel it appropriate for others to be present,” U.W. Clemon, a retired judge involved with an ongoing desegregation case, said.
Clemon was set to host the meeting at Hoover High School on Dec. 7. Clemon declined to provide more details about the decision to cancel, but a post was circulated on social media by several conservative Alabama organizations that have warned about the potential influence of critical race theory, an academic concept. The post encouraged residents to attend the Hoover meeting and be “informed of the issues.”
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Since 2015, Hoover officials have sought independence from a 58-year-old desegregation order. The district is one of dozens of Alabama school districts that are still under federal oversight.
Hoover City Schools officials did not respond to questions about alleged threats but confirmed the meeting had been canceled.
“The school district did not organize the meeting,” Superintendent Dee Fowler told AL.com on Friday. “It was requested by Judge Clemon so that I could meet many of the members of the plaintiffs’ class in the district’s school desegregation case. We were more than happy to provide a venue for the meeting and looked forward to the opportunity to participate in it. It is our understanding that the meeting has been canceled and will not go forward as planned.”
Clemon said he did not seek additional security from the district but said he had discussed canceling the meeting with a district attorney after what he called a “white conservative group” caught wind of the meeting and said they planned to attend.
Clemon, who represents Black students in an ongoing desegregation case, said that as the district adjusts to new leadership, it’s more important than ever for Black families to have a voice in the process.
“I think it’s fair to say that things came to a standstill under the last superintendent,” Clemon said of Hoover City Schools’ previous superintendent Kathy Murphy, who left the system last year. “The Black plaintiffs lost confidence in her ability to comply with the requirements of the school segregation order.”
In the 1965 lawsuit Stout v. Jefferson County Board of Education, a federal judge said Jefferson County was operating a “dual system” of schools: one for white students and one for black students. A 1971 order in that case required federal oversight of all school systems that broke away from the county system -- including Hoover, Homewood, Midfield, Leeds, Trussville and Vestavia Hills -- to make sure no discrimination occurred.
In order to be released from federal courts and obtain unitary status, the district must prove that racial balance is maintained through zoning, transportation access, equal access to extracurricular activities, equal access to facilities and amenities; and faculty and staff diversity.
In October 2018, the district hired Terry Lamar, a former principal, as its first director of equity and educational initiatives. His role includes directing diversity and equity training, facilitating student research and establishing partnerships with community and national organizations.
But after a video of white students using racial and anti-Semitic slurs surfaced in 2019, parents doubted the district’s commitment to progress.
“This case is over 60 years old,” parent Traci Jones told AL.com at the time. “I’m sorry. I’m impatient. I don’t have another 60 years to give Hoover an opportunity to get it right.”
Weeks later, the system unveiled a “roadmap” for ending federal oversight, detailing new plans to hire more teachers of color and train staff to eliminate bias in instructional and disciplinary practices. At that meeting, several Black parents cited instances of racism in the school system and said the district lacked a sense of urgency.
Hoover is required to submit status reports on its desegregation plan to the court every two years. Its most recent report, filed on Nov. 15 of this year, cited changes to its code of conduct and gave updates to advanced course offerings and student and staff diversity.
Clemon said he plans to reschedule the community meeting at a later date.
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December 04, 2021 at 04:25AM
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Hoover community desegregation meeting canceled after social media post - al.com
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