Why I am Running for Board of Education

On the issue of race, I once described America as an old, defective, complicated electrical equipment with frayed and exposed wires, with exploding fuses and frequently bursting into flames.

It is a defective equipment whose stewards never bothered to spend any meaningful time, expertise, or resources to fix. Our politicians are like semi-qualified electricians who handle this equipment through quick fixes like using electrical tape or replacing the fuse instead of dealing with its fundamental issues like replacing its expensive parts. They just needed it to work for their own purposes until they were done using it.

Howard County prides itself on being a progressive county. The words anti-racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion are frequently uttered by various county officials and community organizations.

Over the past few months we as a society have witnessed unimaginable pain and suffering as the Gaza genocide gets live-streamed to our phones. The shock and horror of this genocide was met by a deafening silence from our community. Specifically our school system’s response highlighted glaring flaws.

First the former superintendent responded with a highly slanted email to the community, which was only corrected after pushback. Second, students who demonstrated against the genocide faced serious and egregious acts of censorship. For instance, at River Hill, two students were reprimanded by school leadership for wearing a Free Palestine shirt/button but other students wearing shirts with logos of the Israeli Defense Force were not disciplined. When students attempted to organize a walk out, they were not permitted to use signs about Palestine. Third, every single member of the board, despite sustained testimonies during BOE public forums, continues to be silent on a matter that affects many of our schoolchildren and teachers. And lastly, the Board has done nothing to address the climate of fear and intimidation against speaking out that teachers have experienced.

I was the target of a concerted effort to remove me from the PTA council of Howard County (PTACHC). Faced with intense pressure from Zionists the PTACHC board was steadfast in defending free speech and the right to free expression. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same thing about another civic organization, where the board removed me after pressure due to racism.

White supremacy and racism are at the heart of how this community has responded to this genocide.

It would be naive to assume that these oppressive forces are eradicated, but the past few months have shown that they continue to have a stranglehold. Despite the lip-service on anti-racism and DEI, after years of trainings, conferences, rhetoric, and election campaigns, it appears as though the antiracism and DEI movement in Howard County failed its first major test.

The past few months have clarified for me our social ails, specifically, the continued underinvestment in black and brown communities, the disparities in educational outcomes, and the persistent inequity in allocation of resources are not an accident. There appears to be a common thread tying the oppression of Palestinians and Black and Brown people in America. Local civic organizations who purport to espouse progressive values while selectively ignoring this major glaring instance of oppression seem to be those whose safety and security are not under threat.

In other words, the deafening silence today is simply a manifestation of a larger problem. Advocates on civil rights, educational, economic issues at the local level are willing to accept marginal improvements in the conditions of vulnerable communities, because those advocates are largely unaffected by the conditions on which they advocate. Progress has been taking place at the comfort level of those who are safe and comfortable.

There is no doubt that the issues are complicated and require thoughtful solutions. We do not lack smart and dedicated people. The source of slow progress is not due to the complexity. Going back to the metaphor of the defective machine, our politicians are “semi-qualified electricians” because those whose safety and security is guaranteed today don’t need them to be well-qualified to properly repair this defective machine. 

It is no accident that our school system is not inclusive. It is designed not to be inclusive. It is no accident that our BOE members do not speak out against genocide or the climate of fear in our school system. That would mean they are elected to represent truth and justice.

I’m running for the BOE to advocate for a truly inclusive school system that protects the wellbeing of all children.

A genuinely inclusive school system is one where diversity is not only acknowledged but celebrated, where every student sees their identity and experiences reflected in their education. We should foster a school system where the discussion of topics advanced by the Black Lives Matter movement, the school system’s gender-inclusive guidelines, the erasure of Palestinian identity by excluding it from the history books, and the crimes of settler colonialism, are not considered controversial issues. They maybe uncomfortable to some, but they are not controversial. Our safety and security is guaranteed only when we guarantee safety and security for all students.

What we see today is the selective application of inclusive acts with lip service given to some students but not others based on their identities. For years, Howard County politicians have advanced performative measures to appeal to marginalized communities to get elected. All the big talk about fighting against book banning by Moms for Liberty and standing up against white supremacy to protect Black rights has been rendered hollow given the school system's lack of collective response to the climate of fear created by white supremacy shrouded with Zionism. Inclusivity needs to be intentionally and actively practiced for ALL students, especially when it is difficult and politically unpopular.

To some, inclusivity is a zero-sum game where their rights can only be preserved at the expense of others’ rights.

To others inclusivity means, ensuring that every student, regardless of their background, feels safe and supported, particularly those who may feel marginalized by the existing system. This includes fostering an environment that upholds gender identity without stigma or the need for parental consent for affirming student names and pronoun requests, and one where the curriculum presents an honest depiction of history, free from censorship or whitewashing.

Building an inclusive school system is the cornerstone for creating a society that values and uplifts every individual. It is about transforming our schools into places where the fear of retribution for advocacy is replaced by the celebration of diverse voices and where every policy and action taken by the Board of Education moves us closer to this goal.

All of these issues have inspired me to run for BOE. My campaign’s platform is made up of five issues:

Build a Truly Inclusive School System: Inclusivity means ensuring that every student, regardless of their background, feels safe and supported, particularly those who may feel marginalized by the existing system. This includes fostering an environment that upholds gender identity without stigma or the need for parental consent for affirming student names and pronoun requests, and one where the curriculum presents an honest depiction of history, free from censorship or whitewashing.

Demand a Fully-Funded School System: As a Board member, I will push for a budget that truly reflects the needs of our school system, ensuring equitable, quality education for every student and fair compensation for our educators.

Commit to New School Construction: My commitment is unequivocally towards mitigating school overcrowding and eliminating dependency on trailers through the construction of new educational facilities. This mission will be aggressively advanced by seeking supportive legislation at both state and county levels.

Eliminate Deferred Maintenance and Stop the Proliferation and School Trailers: My platform commits to rectifying these issues by pushing for proactive planning and budget allocation that ensures our schools are not just sufficient in number, but safe, healthy, and conducive to learning for all students.

Fix School Transportation: Restore bus services, ensuring no child's education is hindered by lack of transportation. Push for a robust public engagement in critical decisions. Provide technical oversight of contract executions, and push for HCPSS to move toward owning and maintaining its own bus fleet, which will not only enable direct control over transportation services but also prevent a monopoly situation.

If you agree with these goals, then this is your campaign and I urge you to join me. We can work toward a school system where no child’s identity is controversial, where our schools are fully funded, and we have equitable allocation of resources. We can work toward a truly inclusive and anti-racist school system that makes improvements at the rate of progress of those who need it the most.