Catholic School Principal Fired After Calling Police on Black Parents Over Racial Slur Incident

Principal Fired After Calling Police on Black Parents

• 📌 A Catholic school principal in Oregon, Tresa Rast, was fired weeks after calling the police on Black parents, Mike Phillips and Karis Stoudamire Phillips.
• 💡 The parents were at the school to address an incident where their fourth-grade son was called the N-word by a classmate.
• ⚠️ The principal called the police when the parents refused to leave the school grounds after a heated confrontation.

Parents' Account of the Incident

• 🗣️ The Phillips family stated that the racial incident ended in a confrontation with Principal Rast.
• ⚖️ They demanded accountability and pointed to a previous, inadequately handled incident involving their older son.
• 🚫 The principal's request for police presence was questioned due to her initial inability to provide names and her description of the parents as "the second one."

Escalation and Community Backlash

• 🏫 The Phillips' son was later expelled, leading to significant backlash from the school community.
• ✊ A petition demanding the school apologize, dismiss the principal, and investigate the racial slur garnered over 5,000 signatures.
• 📢 Mike Phillips described the principal's actions as an "abuse of power," highlighting the implications of a Black man having the police called on him.

Principal's Defense and Diminishment of Claims

• 🎭 The principal, in a 911 recording, expressed feeling like she was being "nailed to a cross" and claimed to be advocating for the child.
• 🗣️ A voice in the background contradicted the principal, stating the child did not trust her.
• 🔬 A student witness corroborated the racial slur, but the principal allegedly diminished the claim, suggesting the witness needed therapy for being "deprogrammed" from anti-racist training.

Aftermath and Institutional Response

• 😔 The principal reportedly felt "deeply betrayed" by her priest and the archdiocese following her termination.
• 🤷 Officials from the school and archdiocese have not publicly commented on the situation.
• 🎯 The discussion highlights the systemic nature of such issues and the need to address the harm caused to the child.