A teacher at Eighth Street Middle School in Tifton, Georgia, was docked five days of pay for posting a negative comment about #BlackLivesMatter on her personal Facebook page.
Kelly Tucker wrote, in response to an image of protesters holding the “Black Lives Matter” sign, The Tifton Gazette reported: “[It’s] turned in a race matter. What about the thugs that beat the father in his vehicle because he didn’t slow down? What about the thugs that shot the college baseball player because they were bored? The list can go on and on. If the dude hadn’t have stolen, he would be alive. I think signs should read, take the hood off your head and pull up your dang pants and quit impregnating everybody. I’m tired of paying for these sorry [expletive] thugs. I would much rather my hard earned money, that the government takes, go to people who need it, such as abusive adults with children. Not to mention the animals that they beat and fight too. That’s all I’m saying.”
Tift County School Board officials at first suspended Mr. Tucker for 10 days without pay, The Daily Caller reported. But late Wednesday evening, they voted to reduce the suspension to five days, WALB reported.
“The ground does exist to impose disciplinary action against Mrs. Tucker and impose a five day suspension without pay and diversity training,” board member John Smith said, The Daily Caller reported.
And county attorney Hank Pittman, who had argued for the full 10-day penalty, said the post “offend[ed] a large segment of our society here in Tifton — the African American community — and it has undermined Ms. Tucker’s ability to function in her position as a teacher.”
Mr. Pittman called her Facebook post “a violation of the code of ethics for educators,” The Daily Caller said.
But Tina Folsom, an attorney for Ms. Tucker, said her client has a First Amendment right and that local critics were blowing her post out of proportion.
The five-day suspension without pay will cost Ms. Tucker a total of $1,250, The Daily Caller said.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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