Insane: Black Female Principal of Prominent Chicago High School Under Pressure to Resign for Warning Against Violence and Looting

A friend sent me this Chicago Tribune storyover the weekend, and I had to read its key passage twice to make sure I was understanding it correctly. Unfortunately, I was. Amid all manner of unhinged derangement coursing through our society in this season of tumult, this still reads as satire. Alas, satire seems to be facing cancellation at the hands of reality. In which a progressive black woman is under pressure to step down from her leadership position because she is outwardly opposed to criminal conduct:

Kenner, who previously worked for the Rev. Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow PUSH Coalition, has not been immune to criticism for her response to Floyd’s death and more broadly her leadership at Whitney Young, where she also spent five years as assistant principal. Now, after 25 years at the helm of Whitney Young, she finds herself the target of an online petition, posted by unnamed “disappointed alumni,” calling for her to resign, claiming she has “silenced student activists speaking against all forms of injustice. Her silence and her enabling of the systematic oppressionthat her black and low-income students face should be condemned.” So far it’s gained more than 800 signatures...

Some who signed the resignation petition cited her history at Whitney Young, claiming she has “worked to sweep the injustices ... under the rug” and “consistently puts the perception of the school by the general public over the well-being of her students.” Other critics have focused on more recent events. Several students told the Tribune they were offended by statements Kenner made in a video address about unrest sparked by George Floyd’s killing, in which she asked that if students do protest, they not participate in violence or looting, and said the way to seek change is to get a degree and get a "seat at the table.”

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