To the editor:

Dear School Board and Dr. Gregory Hutchings, Ed.D: I just watched some of the most recent School Board meeting and I could barely focus on its content because your “We’re on an antiracist journey” t-shirts and Zoom backgrounds were so distracting.

I do not know if your intention is to be divisive, but I assure you, that is the result. I very much appreciated the comment of Ms. Seltzer, who emphasized that the focus of the board is education and not politics.

I attended Alexandria City Public Schools my entire life. We were all proud to be Titans. You can ask anyone of any race who ever graduated from T.C. and they will be proud to be a Titan. Indeed, our diversity is what most of us are most proud of in this city, and certainly in the schools.

John Porter, the legendary principal of T.C., was able to unify the extremely diverse student body in a way where everyone felt included no matter their socioeconomic or racial background. We didn’t have to mandate equity to do it either, was instilled by a shared proud identity as Titans who all came from the same city.

I once spoke to a man in jail in the middle of the night that I encountered through my job and he said he went to T.C. I said I did too. He is black. I am white. We shared a moment of Titan pride right there in the jail. “Awww T.C.!” I said. We both cheered.

I’m sorry if there have been incidents of racism, but this is not the way to go about addressing it. We can be proud of our diversity and also address things that need to be addressed without intentionally or unintentionally offending and dividing people.

I am proud to be a T.C. grad, but I am not proud of the manner in which you are choosing to promote equity.

-Liz Fuller, Alexandria