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A London high school principal’s ouster after allegations he wore a Black student’s shaved hair as a wig was “more than warranted,” says a Black Lives Matter London leader who publicly raised the issue.
The removal of Monseigneur-Bruyère principal Luc Chartrand, confirmed by the head of the area’s French-language Catholic school board, came swiftly in the fallout of the allegations raised this weekend by the local Black Lives Matter group, which called for him to be removed.
“I’ll never rejoice over another person losing their career. I definitely think that, in this situation, it was more than warranted,” lead activist Gal Harper said in an interview Sunday.
The group, he said, had received other complaints about Chartrand from former students and parents since the initial allegations were made public late Friday. Harper said the school board’s decision is a step toward better inclusivity and racial sensitivity at the Huron Street school.
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“Dealing with racism as a student, whether it’s in elementary school or high school, you kind of only bring it to the teacher’s attention a couple times and then that’s the end of it when you start to realize nothing is being done about it,” he said.
“We feel like we can be a voice to bring attention to these kinds of issues, to get them corrected so kids don’t have to keep feeling uncomfortable, unsafe or unwelcome.”
Chartrand could not be reached for comment this weekend. But a man identifying himself as Chartrand spoke out on social media Sunday, calling his behaviour “totally not acceptable” in these instances.
“I continue to educate myself on the matter and wholeheartedly support and appreciate the Black Lives Matter movement.” He adds: “I can only pray that I will have your forgiveness and we can all move forward together.”
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School board officials were clear in their concern over the allegations, based on a brief video taken at the school two years ago.
“We strongly condemn this type of behaviour and maintain a zero tolerance policy toward any racism, discrimination, or the appearance thereof,” Joseph Picard, education director of the Conseil Scolaire Catholique Providence, said Sunday.
“As such, we have immediately removed the principal from his current position.”
It wasn’t immediately clear whether Chartrand has been dismissed, suspended or re-assigned within the board.
Black Lives Matter London’s allegations stem from a cancer fundraiser in the spring of 2019, at which some students at Monseigneur-Bruyère shaved their heads. The group alleges Chartrand picked up some of the shaved hair of a Black student and put it on his own head.
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A four-second video clip of the scene posted on social media Friday showed a man Black Lives Matter London alleges is Chartrand pick up the hair and place it on his head. The man’s action is met with surprise by the student, cheers and laughs from the crowd and one person exclaiming off camera, “Oh, that’s nasty!”
Black Lives Matter claims Chartrand then saved the unidentified student’s shaved hair, possibly with permission from the student, made it into a wig and wore it later as part of a Halloween costume.
Picard, in a statement Sunday, said the school board “is aware of the video posted on Instagram regarding the conduct of one of our principals.”
Black Lives Matter London says it was approached by a former student at the school who witnessed the 2019 incident and was hurt by it. The anti-Black racism group says the former student made a complaint to the school board about the incident last year.
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In the two years since the incident at Monseigneur-Bruyère, Picard said the board has taken many steps to promote anti-racism and inclusion, including hiring a human rights and equity advisor and reviewing its hiring practices to ensure staff reflect the diversity of their communities.
“Despite these steps, this situation makes it clear that we have more work to do in order to establish and promote the kind of learning environment where everyone feels safe and respected,” Picard said.
“We will be taking further steps to address this issue across our board in the coming weeks and months.”
The French-language Catholic school board takes in 23 elementary and seven high schools in a wide area of Southwestern Ontario.
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Black Lives Matter London reacts to principal's ouster amid controversy - London Free Press (Blogs)
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