HANOVER COUNTY, Va. -- The president of the Hanover Branch of the NAACP spoke out against a published comment made by a county school leader calling her an "angry African-American lady."
Hanover NAACP President Pat Hunter-Jordan authored an open letter on behalf of the organization criticizing the direction of the Hanover School Board and accused the most recent member, John Redd of the Mechanicsville District, of being unable to represent a diverse population of students across the school division.
The letter called on the Board of Supervisors to reconsider some members they appointed to the school board. Hanover County is one of the only localities in Central Virginia where school board members are not elected, but rather picked and approved by supervisors.
Hunter-Jordan claimed the appointment process has not been transparent and that the last three school board members to be removed voted in favor of changing the names of schools in 2020 that were formerly named after Confederate generals.
Emails from 2020 obtained through open record laws revealed Redd expressed frustration to Supervisor Canova Peterson over his predecessor Sterling Daniel voting in favor of changing the names.
Additionally, the letter accused Redd, who took office July 1, of being unable to separate his religious views from his duties as a public servant.
Emails in the weeks and months leading up to his appointment showed Redd told Peterson that school policies to accommodate transgender students were against his Biblical worldview, transgender students should be dealt with by mental health professionals, and the Christian conservative voting margin would strengthen in July.
In response to the letter, Redd was quoted in the Richmond Times-Dispatch saying, “Have you done any research on the source of this letter? Does this letter represent the views of the Hanover NAACP or the views of an angry African American lady who holds the title of president of that organization? Check it out — do a little research on Pat Hunter-Jordan — that could result in an interesting story for a truth-seeking investigative reporter. I will not be making any further comment.”
Hunter-Jordan went before the Board of Supervisors on Wednesday during a regularly scheduled meeting to express her disapproval of Redd's remark.
“I come here this afternoon with a smile on my face, and I hope that reflects I am not an angry Black woman, which I was called yesterday by someone you placed on our School Board," Hunter-Jordan said. "No reason for him to tag me with that. I've never been disrespectful to any of you, never disrespectful before this board, and that was what I was labeled, but we're used to that. Any confident Black woman receives that label at least once in her lifetime."
She was joined by citizens who rallied around her.
"I'm horrified that our newly appointed School Board Member Mr. Redd has claimed that Ms. Hunter-Jordan is simply an angry African-American lady. Let that sit in your head for a moment. If Mr. Redd doesn't respect the president of the NAACP, how can I trust that he will have the best interest in mind of the thousands of Black and Brown children in our school system? Shame on him for being dismissive and unprofessional," said Lorie Foley.
"The words and the language that was uttered by a certain gentleman about her was a slap in the face to Ms. Jordan, a slap in the face to my wife, to my two daughters, to people that look like me," said Ellison Burley. "And hopefully, his words and his rhetoric will be thought about and discussed by you all."
Chairwoman of the Board of Supervisors Angela Kelly-Wiecek told the public the board cannot simply remove a school board member and that it would take the board having to petition the Circuit Court.
"The Circuit Court would have to make a finding of removal, and that would generally require some sort of wrongdoing," Kelly-Wiecek said. "I am deeply sorry to have to address this again."
Since removal is likely not possible, some parents called on the Board of Supervisors to put Redd through training or give him guidance on how to improve as a school board member, though Supervisor Peterson said that decision would need to be made by the School Board.
Peterson defended Redd's "angry African-American" comment Wednesday.
When asked if he believed Redd's comment was inappropriate, he responded that the NAACP letter was inappropriate. Peterson said Redd and Hunter-Jordan have both shot arrows at each other and he doesn't want to get in the middle of it.
Peterson added that Redd's comment was a "human reaction."
In a statement made to CBS 6, School Board Chairman John Axselle distanced the board from Redd's remark.
"Comments from individual board members, aside from those expressed by the board chair, are made in their individual capacity and should not be received as representing the position of the Hanover County School Board. It appears that Mr. Redd elected to respond in his individual capacity as a board member to specific allegations and comments directed at him. With regard to the recent letter authored by the Hanover NAACP, the School Board welcomes the input that we receive from our community, both critical and complimentary. As always, the School Board’s primary focus is upon providing our students with a top-tier education," Axselle said.
Redd did not respond to CBS 6's inquiries about his statement Wednesday. He previously told CBS 6 that he intended to serve all students in Hanover equally.
