Bonnie Bolden

bbolden@thenewsstar.com

Morehouse Parish School Board member Chastity Kennedy said her behavior before and since being elected has remained consistent. What has changed, she said, is a political climate in which people are more willing to be openly racist or xenophobic.

In the past two weeks, ire has been up on both sides of the political divide after Kennedy shared a digitally altered photo of Vice President Mike Pence and the Republican members of Congress wearing Ku Klux Klan hoods. The image read "Okay, now one with the hoods off!" and includes the unaltered photo. The image was posted without commentary by Kennedy.

MPSB President Leland "Chip" Rawls encouraged people to contact the Louisiana Board of Ethics with their complaints. He said that he has since learned that the board does not handle racism allegations.

Rawls said Friday that if a school employee had done the same thing, she would probably be fired based on ethical standards, according to what he's gathered.

"But an elected official isn't held at that standard. I found out since then that she has done nothing unethical per Board of Ethics," he said. "It's perfectly fine for an elected official to post things like that per Board of Ethics attorneys.

"So, you know, I don't like it, as an individual, but that's what I tried to say to begin with. She doesn't represent the whole board. She's just one individual."

Kathleen M. Allen, an administrator with the Ethics Administration Program, said the Louisiana Board of Ethics does not have jurisdiction to address allegations of racism. Allen said the Board of Ethics jurisdiction can be found at ethics.la.gov/Pub/Laws/ethsum.pdf. She said if you feel an elected official or a public employee has violated one of those laws, a complaint may be submitted to the board's attention. She said there have been several inquiries about racism allegations, but they have not tracked the exact number.

Kennedy later posted an image purported to be Rawls standing next to someone in blackface at a Halloween party. The image recently was published widely with information stating he was in the photo. Rawls has retained an attorney.

Rawls said it's not him, and the photo had been deleted from his Facebook account six months to two years ago.

"If she's had the picture for a lengthy amount of time, why wasn't it posted when she first initially got it six months to two years ago then and say I shouldn't have laughed at my friend at a Halloween party? Why, now, is it important when she's under the gun when it was done— you know, it was on my Facebook in 2013.

Scott Richard, executive director of the Louisiana School Boards Association, said school board members have First Amendment rights, just like everyone else, and the association promotes professional behavior. There is a code of conduct the association advises boards to adopt. If that code is violated, other board members can opt to censure that member, but that carries no legal weight. If a law has been broken, the proper legal authority should be notified.

Richard said they hope board members can resolve a conflict before it reaches that point. Ultimately, at the end of the day, board members are responsible to their constituents.

Additionally, Bastrop Mayor-elect Henry Cotton has said Kennedy will serve as his administrative assistant. Kennedy said she is "honored that he has chosen me to be a member of his administrative team, and I will work diligently with the other team members to help move Bastrop forward, and transform our city into the best small city in America."

Some residents have questioned whether Kennedy holding an elected position with the school board and being hired by the city might violate the Louisiana Dual Officeholding Law. Opinions on whether a person can be an elected official and hold another government position have to come from the Louisiana Attorney General's Office. The News-Star requested information about this case and has not yet received a response.

Allen said her office is not in a position to comment about how the law would be applied, and it is not under the jurisdiction of the Louisiana Board of Ethics.

Fourth Judicial District Attorney Steve Tew said Friday that he has not yet evaluated the situation to determine whether his office will need to take any action. If the law is being violated, they will deal with it accordingly.

Kennedy responded to The News-Star's questions in an email. She said other media outlets have abbreviated her comments to change the meaning and requested that her responses be provided in-full.

Read more: Student wants to take viral project to state win | Henry Cotton elected mayor of Bastrop

Kennedy's responses are presented as provided:

The News-Star: You’ve been very vocal on social media from the beginning of your time on the school board. When did you start using that platform to discuss social issues? What kinds of social issues do you most commonly discuss and what kind of response have you seen from using social media?

Kennedy: Like you stated, I’ve been using social media as a platform to discuss social issues from the very beginning; even before I became a candidate for public office. I’ve always been an advocate for myself and my children. So, when I decided to run for a seat on the Morehouse Parish School Board, I knew it would be my opportunity to advocate for other children, and I knew that social media would play a vital role in helping to promote my EMPOWERMENT message to my target audience.

The issues I discuss on social media will always be rooted in an empowerment concept created by my teammate, Craig B. Lee, known as The Six Pillars of Empowerment: Spirituality, Culture, Education, Economics, Socio-nomics and Politics. My agenda is to help EMPOWER grassroots people to take control of their destiny at the local level. I have committed myself to become the proto-type for Grassroots Empowerment in Bastrop-Morehouse Parish, so when grassroots people see a mother of 2 beautiful children willing to risk her life for their freedom, justice, cultural diversity and equity, they can become motivated to do the same thing. Then, substantive and progressive change can finally happen for the HAVE NOTS!

I have received overwhelmingly positive responses from my social media posts over the years from all over the country; especially now, due to the critical issues that I am discussing in the current ‘Trumpian’ era of American politics. However, I will also receive the occasional negative responses, and I accept those right along with the positive comments, because that provides a realistic view of the society at large. Like Denzel Washington’s character said in the movie ‘Fences’, “You have to be willing to take the CROOKEDS with the STRAIGHTS.”

The News-Star: As noted previously, you have made statements regarding other school board members acting for racial reasons and posted a video of yourself discussing "Waiting for SUPERMAN - "Saving Us from the System of Capitalistic White Supremacy.” Additionally, you have not said the pledge since joining the board. Considering that your actions up to this point have been public and consistent, do you know why people are angry now?

Kennedy: You are absolutely correct, what I have been saying and doing over the past 2.5 years has not changed and is not new, however, what has changed is the political climate in America. In January 2017, the ‘Trumpian’ era of American politics began with the inauguration of Donald Trump as 45th President of the United States. Hence, those individuals who have been rolling with a COVERT ‘White Supremacist’ agenda for the past 43 years, since the beginning of ‘Psuedo Consumer Integration Era’ in 1974, now feel and believe that it is okay for them to revert back to the OVERT ‘White Supremacist’ agenda that created and dominated this country for 355 years, 1619 to 1974. So, it’s not that some White people have become angry all of a sudden, it’s more like the election of Donald Trump has stimulated some White people to feel more comfortable and courageous about expressing their true racist and xenophobic feelings. So, when I reposted the ‘MEME’ on Monday, which compared the KKK with the Republican led Congress, some White people felt emboldened to make me the point of attack versus focusing on the REAL ISSUES. Hence, the pseudo anger and outrage expressed by some White people is merely a distraction and diversion from the real issues: inequitable public policies in the areas of education, employment, housing, healthcare, community revitalization, etc.; the School-to Prison Pipeline; mass incarceration; law enforcement violence against unarmed citizens; inequitable public and private sector contract procurement opportunities for African-American businesses; and the list goes on and on. This is why Bastrop-Morehouse Parish has remained an oppressive city for grassroots people. However, with my successful election to the Morehouse Parish School Board, and the successful elections of Darry ‘D. D.’ Green to the Bastrop City Council and Henry Cotton as Mayor of Bastrop, a new day of cultural diversity, economic parity and justice is dawning in Bastrop-Morehouse Parish, and I am honored to play a key role in this grassroots empowerment movement.

The News-Star: What are the issues you would most like to see addressed in your community in particular?

Kennedy: 1. Reinstituting the federal consent decree for the Morehouse Parish School System; 2. Eliminating education inequities in the Morehouse Parish School System; 3. Eliminating contract procurement inequities in the Morehouse Parish School System; 4. Establishing a cultural curriculum in the Morehouse Parish School System; 5. Eliminating the School-to-Prison Pipeline; 6. Reconfiguring parish political district boundaries to establish political equity for African-American voters; 7. Establishing the philosophy of Cultural Diversity throughout Bastrop-Morehouse Parish; 8. Fostering entrepreneurship in Bastrop-Morehouse Parish; 9. Economic Development and Employment Opportunities; and 10. Community Revitalization