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Allegations raised on social media that a London high school principal wore a Black student’s shaved hair as a wig two years ago have cost him his job.
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 Black Lives Matter London, which called for him to be removed from his post.
“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. Attempts to reach Chartrand for comment were not successful as of mid-day Sunday.
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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.
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 in the year as part of a Halloween costume.
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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.”
Chartrand could not be reached for comment Sunday.
Black Lives Matter London says it was approached by a former student at the school who witnessed the 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.
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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Principal loses post in fallout of Black Lives Matter wig-wearing allegations - London Free Press (Blogs)
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