A Black Texas high school principal is speaking up after he said he has been wrongfully accused by parents of perpetuating racism when in fact, he says he's the one who has been a victim of bigotry.
Colleyville Heritage High School Principal James Whitfield said some parents have accused him of teaching critical race theory and teaching students that white people are inherently racist, NBC 5 reported.
Whitfield and the Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District have both denied the allegations.
In 2019, while he was a principal at Colleyville Heritage Middle School, a parent complained to the school district about an image of Whitfield and his wife about to kiss on his personal Facebook page. His supervisor contacted him and told him to check the internet, where he saw the photo reposted.
"I look at the picture, and I look at the words above it, and it says, 'Is this the Dr. Whitfield we want leading our schools?' I showed it to my wife, who immediately begins to well up with tears," he said.
The district then ordered him to remove it without giving an explanation.
"They said, 'Could you take it down? Can you take this picture down? Can you hide it?' and I asked, 'Why? What's wrong with the picture?'" he continued. "It was, 'Hey, I am trying to avoid any conflict.”
The principal took to the social media platform last Saturday to explain the picture, which can be seen in the below broadcast, was taken a decade ago in Mexico to celebrate the couple's 10-year anniversary.
"I am not the CRT (Critical Race Theory) Boogeyman," he wrote. "I am the first African American to assume the role of Principal at my current school in its 25-year history, and I am keenly aware of how much fear this strikes in the hearts of a small minority who would much rather things go back to the way they used to be.”
In a statement to People Magazine, the Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District justified having Whitfield remove the photo.
"When a social media concern is brought to the attention of the district, we have a responsibility to review it. Some of the photos the district received contained poses that are questionable for an educator, especially a principal or administrator.”
The district said the incident had “nothing to do with race. As a new campus principal, we wanted to provide a smooth transition for Dr. Whitfield to Heritage Middle School, which is why we advised him of the concern and made a request for the photos to be taken down from Facebook."
Whitfield says he regrets not standing his ground and giving into something he didn’t agree with.
"I wish I had the conviction to say, 'No, I'm not going to take it down; that's a picture of me and my wife kissing on the beach; there's no reason for me to take this photo down,'” he said.
Hundreds have signed a petition to support the principal, as he seeks justice and help from the school district. Now that he’s received some support from his community, Whitfield said he wished he had spoken up sooner.
