Tennessee School Board Chair Resigns Over ‘Get A Rope’ Remark Aimed At Black Suspect

Racism is so deeply baked into white American culture that some white people forget that everywhere isn’t a safe space for their racially tinged humor and exclamations.

To put it plainly, there is no safe racism.

The now-former chairman of the Haywood County School Board, in Haywood, Tennessee, just found this out the hard way after making a remark about hanging a Black teen that he appeared to believe would be accepted as safe racism, because the remark was made regarding a Black teen who has been charged with a horrific crime.

According to WREG News 3, HCSB chair Allen Currie announced Tuesday that he is stepping down after he sparked community-wide outrage by posting  “Get a rope” on social media, along with a news release announcing the arrest of an 18-year-old Black man charged in a mass shooting in Brownsville, Tenn., that killed one teenager and injured several others as they took pictures before prom.

“I am stepping down due to poor judgment,” Currie, who is white, said in a statement announcing his resignation. “This has caused great pain for my school board, my community, as well as my family and me.”

Before we get into the rest of his statement, it’s worth reiterating that the teen in question, Dequarius Dushun Lax, stands accused of shooting seven individuals at a pre-prom picture gathering at Webb F. Banks Passive Park in Brownsville on May 8, killing 17-year-old Saturah Hayes. Lax is charged with first-degree murder in perpetration of a crime, six counts of attempted first-degree murder, six counts of employment of a firearm with intent to go armed, six counts of aggravated assault – use or display deadly weapon, tampering with evidence, reckless endangerment – deadly weapon involved.

Indeed, if Lax is guilty, he should pay for his crimes, but that doesn’t change the fact that white people never immediately start invoking lynching language unless the suspect charged with a violent crime is a Black man. Currie thought he had stumbled across an opportunity to get in a little safe racism, but he was wrong.

From WREG:

The comment resulted in calls from the Haywood County Branch NAACP for Currie to be removed from the school board and issue an apology.

“Such language is unacceptable from any member of the community, and it is especially unacceptable from an elected official entrusted with the care, safety, and leadership of our public schools,” the group said in a statement. “The phrase ‘get a rope’ is not innocent language. It carries a long and painful history tied to lynching, racial terrorism, mob violence, intimidation, and the denial of due process to Black Americans.”

Fitzgerald Mann, President of the Haywood County Branch NAACP, commented on Currie’s resignation and apology: “I am pleased that Mr. Currie accepted responsibility for the statements that he made and that he is doing what is best for the school board and for our community, and this will allow us to start the healing process.”

“And I will say this again, it was never our call that Mr. Currie was racist, his statement was a racist comment. It was a statement that was tied to a racial history that has a very different meaning to folks that have been impacted by statements like that. And again, it’s not about him being a racist, his words were racist in that moment,” said Mann.

You can read Currie’s full statement and apology below:

“After serving Haywood County Schools and our community for 14 years, effective immediately, I am resigning from the school board. I did not intend for the social media post to be hurtful or insensitive. I realize now that it was and I am truly sorry. I certainly did not mean for it to be racist. For that you have my heartfelt apology.

I have spent my entire career trying to make our schools good and safe for our students.

I am stepping down due to poor judgement. This has caused great pain for my school board, my community, as well as my family and me.

At the end of the day the NAACP and I are fighting for the same kids. Our children and Haywood County should not have to worry about being shot at a party, at home, or at a pre-prom photo shoot. Gun violence has got to stop. I want our students to live in a town without fear. The pre-prom mass shooting caused devastation and chaos in our town. So, when I saw that we had apprehended the person responsible I acted out of anger instead of thought. Once I realized how it could be interpreted, I took it down.“

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