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Teachers call for resignation of Cabarrus school board member who used slur during meeting

Charlotte Observer - 9/23/2020

Sep. 23--More than 2,000 people signed a petition calling on a Cabarrus County school board member to resign the day after she apologized for using a derogatory slur for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

During a brief recess of a virtual school board meeting Monday night, Laura Blackwell appeared to be criticizing the district's remote learning plan while her computer microphone picked up a conversation.

"This is the most r-- thing I've ever seen. We have done so much detriment to these kids," she is heard saying. While off screen, Blackwell is also heard agreeing with another unidentified person on the call who says young children should not be kept in front of a computer.

Another board member appeared visibly shocked by Blackwell's comment and is seen in the livestream of the meeting putting her hand over her mouth. Blackwell's comment came after several board members put their computers on mute or walked away from the meeting during an approved 5 to 10 minute recess.

Later in the board meeting, Blackwell apologized. She said she did not realize her microphone was on during the break and said that it spoke to the stress and frustration she was facing as a board member.

"I feel really led that I need to speak right now and apologize," Blackwell said. "I used some colorful words that I certainly apologize for... there's a lot of frustration that comes with all of this. I'm not going to make excuses for the words that I used. I just want to say that I'm sorry."

Blackwell did not immediately respond to an email from the Observer on Tuesday.

During Monday's meeting, the board voted 4-3 to send students back to in-person learning. Cabarrus County Schools originally reopened to students this year with full remote instruction, similar to other districts such as Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. The move was due to COVID-19 concerns.

Now, with the board's vote, Grades K-3 will attend under Plan A in Cabarrus County. That provides five days of in-person instruction for the youngest student, while the older grades will return in a hybrid model of virtual and physical classrooms.

In response to Blackwell's comment Monday, Cabarrus County Schools condemned the incident in a statement, calling the comments inappropriate and unacceptable.

"As a community of educators, Cabarrus County Schools works to ensure that our students understand that it is never acceptable to use disparaging or demeaning words," the statement read. "We place these same expectations of civility and decorum on the adults associated with our district and do not condone what transpired during the recess."

Board chair Rob Walker said he was disappointed that the incident happened and that emotions got so heated a board member would use hurtful language. He said he hoped the incident could be used as a teaching moment on the importance of respect and inclusion for people with intellectual disabilities, while noting that Blackwell appeared remorseful and later apologized for her comment.

"We have to watch our words, be respectful to differences of opinion, and not allow frustrations to impact our civility," he said in a statement. "We are all passionate individuals who want the best for our students and school system... The use of the R-word is hurtful and derogatory to a group of people and thankfully it wasn't directed at any individual but still should not be part of someone vocabulary."

Walker said the board was reviewing the incident and board policies. If any action is required or necessary, he said, the board would take those steps at its next meeting.

A petition started Tuesday morning by Cabarrus County educators called for Blackwell's resignation. By the late afternoon, it had drawn over 2,000 signatures.

The petition writers criticized Blackwell for blaming her use of the slur on frustration, and said that they were shaken to see a district leader use such language.

"That word would NEVER be used by empathetic, educated, caring, supportive individuals," the petition said. "It is a word rooted in hate, and perpetuated by ignorance. It has NO place in a civilized society, let alone the world we are molding and shaping for our future generations. It has no place in Cabarrus County. None."

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