Wilson School Board member under fire for racist statements [Video]
Nov. 10—A Wilson School Board member apologized Thursday for racist comments he made during a school board meeting Monday.
Mike Martin, who is white, said he didn't realize an article he read aloud near the end of the nearly three-hour long meeting that claimed Black people are easily offended and adverse to "correction" was offensive.
"I really did not think I was being racist," he said in a phone interview Thursday.
Martin's statements at the meeting were immediately rebuffed by board President Steph Kocher. And a statement by Martin's fellow board members, the superintendent and members of the district leadership team posted on the district website following Monday's meeting further condemned them.
"We reject the comments that were made as inappropriate, hurtful and unacceptable," the statement said in part.
On Thursday, Martin said he has come to realize what he said was hurtful.
"I apologize for how it came across," he said. "As horrible as it sounds, it wasn't meant to be a horrible statement and I need to fix it."
Martin said he understands why people are upset with him and apologized.
"I don't want to hurt anybody's feeling, if it came across that way I have to apologize," he said. "I have to step to the plate. I'm really sorry that this thing blossomed into what it manifested into.
"Most people that really know me know that I don't have a racist bone in my body. I know some people think I'm a closet racist and I have to live with that."
Martin said he plans to issue a public apology and explanation at an upcoming board meeting. He said he also plans to meet with a Black family from the district, saying he needs them to tell him what to do to fix the situation.
A second statement from the district sent to community members Thursday and signed by Dr. Christopher Trickett, superintendent, said the school board will hold a special meeting Monday at 7 p.m. to vote on a resolution to formally censure Martin and publicly request his resignation.
Beyond that, the message said, there is little else school officials can do.
"Neither our district administration nor our school board has the legal authority to remove a board member from office based on this current situation," the statement reads. "The only way for this board member to leave office is to resign of their own accord."
Martin said Thursday that he does not plan to resign.
The statement
Martin's remarks came about 2 1/2 hours into Monday's meeting.
He begins by reading from an article he says he found online, making clear they are not his own words.
"This is not me speaking now," he said, later explaining the article was written by a Black man.
The article starts by claiming Blacks are easily offended.
"No group is perfect, however I have to say that Black people get offended often quicker and more often than any other group I have ever seen or dealt with," Martin read.
Continuing to read, Martin says it can be argued the reason for that is the many difficulties they have faced throughout history in the U.S.
"However, what about Black people who are not slaves nor victims of police brutality nor direct victims of racism or oppression?" Martin read. "What about those that simply got offended and made conscious choices to work against their own people?"
The article goes on to claim that Blacks get offended for "petty reasons," and respond poorly "when they get called out for what they did wrong."
"If you don't believe me, ask a young thug politely to pull up his pants and watch how he looks in response," Martin read. "Ask a Black person to turn down his music and observe the response."
The article states that too many Blacks "react ignorantly" and "act primitively."
"The African American community needs to grow up to be accountable from within and learn how to accept correction for the better," Martin read.
After finishing the article, Martin went on to explain his reason for reading it during the meeting.
"Sometimes we don't want to address issues that we should be addressing," he said. "And it comes to discipline within our schools."
Martin claimed that Wilson schools are rife with disruptive student behavior and that school officials are not doing enough to combat it.
"I think sometimes we're afraid to discipline a group because of the recourse or their position or it might offend them," he said.
Martin said he feels school officials are "afraid to take that next step" when it comes to discipline.
"I think we need to start addressing those issues in a more formidable way versus just trying to accommodate because of the certain situations or their upbringing," he said.
Swift response
Kocher, the board president, speaking calmly and clearly, rebuffed Martin's comments immediately after he finished speaking, calling them "utterly offensive and racist."
"You basically equated all of the negative behavior in our schools to our Black students," she said.
Kocher went on to apologize to anyone who was watching the meeting in person or on the district's YouTube page. She called his words "hurtful to anyone that possibly was listening."
"I would like to apologize for our entire board," she said. "Nothing that came out of Mr. Martin's mouth is representative of the Wilson School District or the feelings of, I'm going to say, of the rest of the board."
Another board member questioned why Martin would bring the article to a board meeting to read, and the superintendent pushed back on Martin's overall argument that bad behavior is rampant in the schools and that nothing is being done about it.
"Quite frankly, I don't think those statement are accurate," Trickett said.
Following the meeting, the district issued a statement about Martin's comments.
"At the end of the Wilson School Board meeting held on Monday, November 7, 2022, a board member made a series of comments that were not representative of the views of our other eight board members, our superintendent and our district leadership team," it reads.
The statement goes on to say the district is dedicated to creating a community where everyone feels safe, valued and appreciated.
"We do not accept or condone any hateful or discriminatory comments about any individual or group," it reads.
The message concludes by saying board leadership is working with the district's legal team to determine the next steps to take in response to Martin's comments.
In the district's second statement, issued Thursday, Trickett reiterated the district's distaste for Martin's comments.
"On behalf of myself, the other eight board members and our entire school district leadership team, I want to assure you that we categorically reject these statements as inappropriate, hurtful and unacceptable," it reads.
News of Martin's comments quickly reached students at Wilson High School. This week a student-created petition requesting that Martin resign has been passed around the school.
District spokeswoman Karen Troutman said Thursday that Trickett and high school Principal Daniel Weber have been actively engaged with students since Tuesday morning to help them process the situation.
Martin's explanation
Martin said Thursday that he didn't take into consideration the racial element of the article he read at the meeting, instead focusing on some of the points it made about responsibility.
"I understand it was about Black people, but the theme is taking responsibility, which I think is universal," he said. "It applies to everybody. Obviously, that didn't come across very well."
Martin said he didn't get a chance during the meeting to clarify his purpose for sharing the article.
"I didn't get a chance to really explain that because it kind of turned into a not so good meeting," he said.
Martin's initial comments at the meeting lasted about seven minutes, and he spoke for several more minutes following that initial statement in response to comments from board members and the superintendent.
Other comments under fire
Monday wasn't the first time he has come under fire for comments made at board meetings.
In fact, they came immediately following a discussion over comments Martin made at a meeting last month that some board members found to be anti-transgender and threatening.
Board member Dr. Amy Kennedy asked Martin to apologize for comments he made during a discussion about a book that is part of the district's Reading Olympics program that features a transgender girl as the main character. Some parents in the district have expressed opposition to the book being included in the program.
At the previous meeting, Martin spoke about confronting the parents of young children — 3- and 4-year-olds — who dress their boys in girls clothing or vice versa.
Kennedy said Monday that Martin's comments could be construed as a threat to parents of transgender children and that his words had "an air of toxic masculinity" to them.
Martin refused to apologize Monday, instead doubling down on his previous statements.
He said he finds it hard to believe a parent who dresses their young child in "opposite clothes" has any sanity.
"I would do everything in my means to prevent that from happening," he said. "I say that and I stand by that."
Martin went on to clarify, saying he would confront those parents.
"That doesn't work with me and I'll confront any parents on that issue any day, any time, any place," he said. "I'll come to your house, I'll come to any place. I don't believe in that, I think it's wrong and I stand by those words."
