A Hurt Dog Gon’ Holla
Seth Andrew showed his true colors. We demand justice.
Within hours of us releasing our first essay, We Ain’t Buying It: A Response to Seth Andrew’s Reflections on Race & Democracy Prep, the education community made it clear that they stand with us. We came back to 100+ claps on Medium and an overflowing Instagram inbox. Many more brave souls submitted stories about their experiences at Democracy Prep. Beyond this, activists reached out to us offering support, and former DPPS staff members, who witnessed and experienced many of the atrocities shared through our Black N Brown at DP social media accounts, joined us in solidarity.
Meanwhile, a claim was filed against our essay for copyright infringement for the photo of Seth… An attempt to stop our story from being seen, less than 48 hours after releasing his Reflections on Race, and committing to centering the voices of BIPOC?
We also learned that the original comment that Beaton Matthews, a former faculty member of Democracy Prep, posted under Seth’s essay, has mysteriously disappeared. Matthews articulated the horrors of DPPS’s discipline systems in his response, which can be viewed here. Why delete Beaton’s testimony? How can Seth name commitments to becoming a better anti-racist ally, on the one hand, and on the other, attempt to erase the story of racism at DPPS that he claims he hopes to rectify?
We can only wonder, but we certainly won’t worry. Seth’s photo was removed from our essay, but our voices remain. Perhaps Seth deleted Beaton’s comment, but his voice can still be heard with ours.
We refuse to be silenced.
Seth’s actions were disappointing, but unfortunately, not surprising. These are the truths of the man that we knew, which is why we wrote our response to his essay, Reflections on Race & Democracy Prep. What we are witnessing is a cautionary tale about the white apology in the face of Black oppression:
Apologies must always be shown. Words alone will never reveal what actions will.
Thus, here are the actions that we expect, not just from Seth, but from the institutions that stand as his legacy: Democracy Prep Public Schools and all education entities that he has ever founded, influenced, or plan to institute.
ATONEMENT/RECONCILIATION
Provide a public statement of apology.
Many students and staff responded to Black N Brown at DP’s posts because they still hold unresolved trauma from their time at Democracy Prep. There has never been a clear and unequivocal accounting and atonement for that harm. Therefore, we demand a public apology for the harm done to Black and Brown students and staff, as well as engagement in a restorative process to offer healing for those that still hold trauma experienced during their time at Democracy Prep. Additionally, affected parties should be offered access to supplemental mental health support services. Any current or former student or staff member should have access to these services, without fear of retaliation.
Provide public acknowledgement of its history of harm.
Acknowledge that this is not the first time these concerns have been raised. Many former staff and students raised concerns about racialized treatment at the hands of teachers and school leaders. Those students and staff were pushed out, and in some cases blacklisted, while those who caused harm were promoted and given additional privileges for continuing to work within, and advance, Democracy Prep’s oppressive model.
LEADERSHIP STAFFING CHANGES & TRAINING
Democracy Prep must disavow Seth Andrew.
Seth Andrew must completely disassociate from Democracy Prep. Given the direct harm that he and his (sometimes illegal) policies did to former students and staff, that they are still recovering from today, it is necessary for Democracy Prep to not only disavow his time at the network, but also his image. Seth should no longer be a spokesperson for the organization, paid or otherwise, and should no longer be able to use Democracy Prep for clout, or to advance his own personal agenda. His image and name should be removed from the website.
Democracy Prep must remove chief actors in its harmful history.
Many of the members of Democracy Prep’s Executive Team were either the chief actors of, or present for and complicit in, the actions that actively harmed students and staff. Those people, especially those who still have direct influence over the selection, training, and evaluation of DP’s teachers and leaders must be replaced. Those persons include:
- Lisa Friscia, Chief People Officer
- Linda Jones Easton, Executive Vice President
- Margaret Marrer, Senior Director of K-12 Curriculum and Assessments
- Ajaka Roth, Director of Leadership Development
Democracy Prep must re-evaluate current CEO Natasha Trivers.
Given her involvement in decisions that actively harmed students during her time as a Democracy Prep’s Vice Principal, Principal, and Superintendent, as well as her unwillingness to take bold and immediate action, it is time for her and the Board of Trustees to reconsider her fit and leadership as Democracy Prep’s Chief Executive Officer, especially at this crucial time in history.
- Natasha has articulated, in several network communications, that she is “forging a new path forward,” but has not acknowledged her actions that harmed students and staff.
- A number of former Black and Brown staff members have reported specific instances of discrimination in hiring, management/supervision, promotion, and retention at the hands of Lisa Friscia, the current Chief People Officer. As Lisa Friscia’s Vice Principal, Natasha was lockstep with her in much of her work, some of which was illegal. As the current CEO, Natasha continues to employ Lisa as the CPO, despite being present for her leadership at DPCHS. She is complicit in the harm that Lisa has done to Black and Brown people.
- Democracy Prep needs to examine all hiring and promotion decisions that Lisa was involved with.
- Democracy Prep needs to offer reparations to those harmed by Lisa’s racist, discriminatory, and illegal practices.
- The Master’s tools will never dismantle the Master’s house. It is not possible for the racist leaders who built and benefited from the racist and oppressive systems they created to also be the anti-racist people necessary to seriously dismantle those systems. Thus, the current leadership team must be evaluated by an independent firm from a selection curated by Black N Brown at DP before the organization can truly begin the work of healing and forging an anti-racist culture.
OVERSIGHT & GOVERNANCE
Democracy Prep must add alumni to regional boards.
Each region’s Board of Trustees should have at least one (1) alumni representative, with voting power.
Democracy Prep must create transparency around student discipline and attrition data.
The School Data Dashboards that Democracy Prep’s Principals make to the Board of Trustees are conveniently absent from the Board Meeting Minutes documents that are posted on the Democracy Prep website. Release student suspension, expulsion, and attrition data for ALL Democracy Prep campuses for the last 5 years, and continue to make this data EASILY publicly accessible in the future.
SCHOOL CULTURE REVISIONS
Dismantle and Rebuild Discipline Model.
Democracy Prep must not only “examine its practices” but also dismantle them, build an entirely new structure, and train its staff on that new structure. This means:
- Anti-racism training (facilitated by an outside organization selected with guidance from Black N Brown at DP) for all Democracy Prep staff.
- Dismantling of the “Demerit/Merit/Dream Dollars” system.
- Implementation of a Restorative Practices discipline system that takes into account the unique experiences of, and unique challenges faced by, students who are coming from undeserved/under-resourced communities.
Craft suspension and expulsion policies. Make them publicly accessible.
Adopt universal and transparent guidelines for the suspension and expulsion of students, and share those guidelines publicly.
Incorporate cultural enrichment and socio-emotional supports.
- Increase and improve social services available to students.
- Create and implement a Culturally Responsive Curriculum across all grades and contents.
- Integrate a curriculum that equips students for life beyond high school, i.e. money management and political empowerment.
- Provide more student electives (i.e. sciences, the arts, languages, etc)
Accommodate student needs and vision for secondary education.
Introduce students to a wider array of secondary education options including, but not limited to, community colleges, HBCUs, HSIs, etc. Students should not be required to choose the school that best reflects on Democracy Prep’s reputation or vision of success.
Hold a public town hall.
We encourage Democracy Prep to host a public town hall (via Zoom) in the near future to address DPPS’s students, faculty, and staff. Allow them to speak directly about their experiences and to name other changes they would like to see in the community.
Seth Andrew and Democracy Prep’s leadership expressed desires to see the institution address its past practices and improve its future. We hope that this offering helps them to do that. Any response we receive from Seth Andrew, Democracy Prep, or affiliated parties will be shared with the Black N’ Brown at DP community.
If you would like to support the activism of Black N Brown at DP, please follow us on Instagram: @blacknbrownatdp or email us: wearetheseeds2020@gmail.com.
Sincerely,
The Black N’ Brown at DP Community
They Tried To Bury Us. They Forgot We Were Seeds.
