Westminster Eagle articles by
Kevin Dayhoff and Heidi Schroeder on Carroll County Board of Education Jeff Morse’s resignation:
April 2, 2008
Over the past few weeks it was revealed that Carroll County Board of Education member Jeff Morse used a racial slur while describing a rock formation during a review of construction at the new Manchester Valley High School.
The incident ultimately led to Mr. Morse resigning from his position with ...
The chair of the Carroll County Human Relations Commission said this week that while Board of Education member Jeffrey Morse's recent use of a racial slur was "stupid" and "insensitive," she was sorry that the incident ended with his resignation on March 26.
April 2, 2008
Over the past few weeks it was revealed that Carroll County Board of Education member Jeff Morse used a racial slur while describing a rock formation during a review of construction at the new Manchester Valley High School.
The incident ultimately led to Mr. Morse resigning from his position with the school board last week.
The events have brought up a fair amount of talk about the history of race relations in Carroll County.
One of the topics in subsequent community discussion has been the persistent rumor of Ku Klux Klan activity in Carroll County -- an urban legend which is not supported by history.
Some confusion regarding the KKK in our county may stem from a instance in August 1998 in which a KKK rally was held in Carroll County, Virginia -- not here in Maryland. A Klan member was subsequently prosecuted for burning a cross.
The case went all the way to the Supreme Court, Virginia v. Black, where the decision was overturned. The white defendant's attorney, by the way, was David P. Baugh, an African-American.
This brings to mind Supreme Court Justice Hugo Lafayette Black, whose enduring legacy is his steadfast advocacy for equal rights.
Justice Black figured prominently in three landmark cases involving civil rights issues: Chambers v. Florida, 1940; Gideon v. Wainwright, 1963; and Betts v. Brady, a 1942 case which involved the right to legal counsel (that case did originate in Carroll County).
Justice Black had been nominated to the Supreme Court in 1937. His confirmation was difficult after allegations surfaced that he was a former Ku Klux Klan member (a fact which Justice Black admitted in a famous speech in October 1937 after he was confirmed).
The work of civil rights in our nation would have suffered a serious setback if Justice Black had been denied a seat on the Supreme Court.
One advantage we have in living in Carroll is that it is still small enough to hold our leadership to high standards.
So it was that after Mr. Morse offended and hurt our friends and neighbors with his remark that the community demanded that he be held accountable.
Mr. Morse made a terrible mistake, for which he apologized and then put action to words. He resigned last Wednesday, but the following evening he attended a Carroll County NAACP meeting with Superintendent Dr. Charles Ecker and school board President Cynthia Foley.
Mr. Morse's remark comes at a time when folks are beginning to realize that while we may not have "KKK running around," we just may have very polite prejudice -- and we need to talk about it.
Yet, many folks are reluctant to talk about race for fear of making a mistake and being branded a racist. After all, "No good deed goes unpunished" is the motto of many community activists in Carroll County.
Nevertheless, the Carroll County NAACP is working hard to facilitate meaningful conversation about racial relations in Carroll County.
Please do not confuse the local NAACP chapter with the national NAACP's Baltimore chapter, which seemingly finds racists hiding in every difficult moment.
When the national and Baltimore chapters wanted to brand Carroll County racist as a result of the Bowling Brook incident, it was the Carroll chapter who stood up for our county.
And so it was true that the Carroll County NAACP chapter did NOT call for Mr. Morse's resignation -- and for good reasons.
Nelson Mandela said it best. To not forgive is the same as us taking poison ... and then waiting for our enemies to die.
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that," observed Martin Luther King Jr. "Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. ... (T)oughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction."
By many accounts Mr. Morse is not a racist. He has just received a crash course in sensitivity and, if he had remained on the board, all indications were that Mr. Morse would have taken the lessons learned and put them to work for all of us.
Now, we will never know.
In light of Mr. Morse's resignation it is hard to find a win-win in this difficult series of events. One thing that we have learned is that the Carroll County NAACP is part of the solution.
Hopefully, we can also learn that good folks make mistakes. And if we bestow such dire consequences to good folks, what are we going to do when we are faced with a real racist in our community?
I'm just asking.
Kevin Dayhoff writes from Westminster. E-mail him at kdayhoff@carr.org.
####
04/02/08 By Heidi Schroeder
The chair of the Carroll County Human Relations Commission said this week that while Board of Education member Jeffrey Morse's recent use of a racial slur was "stupid" and "insensitive," she was sorry that the incident ended with his resignation on March 26.
"It was a stupid thing to do, it was an insensitive thing to do, he should never have said it," said Virginia Harrison, chair of the Human Relations Commission, of the comment, but added, "but I just felt like ... as a community we should have been able to resolve the issue."
Morse submitted his resignation following the school board's March 26 meeting.
The resignation followed an apology to the board last week for making an "inappropriate comment" during a tour of the under-construction Manchester Valley High School. The school board did not reveal what the statement was, but acknowledged that someone on that tour had lodged a complaint, which led to a board review.
In a statement from the school board, officials noted Morse's apology to those on the tour and to citizen groups, including the NAACP and Human Relations Commission, but said that after hearing citizen comments on the issue at the board meeting, Morse determined it was in the best interest of the board to resign.
Carroll County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Charles Ecker said that at the March 26 meeting, six or seven residents requested to speak. After those comments -- of which Ecker said some were in favor of Morse's resignation and some were opposed -- the board met in closed session and accepted Morse's resignation.
Harrison said she was sad that the situation reached that conclusion.
"I was very sorry that he resigned, because I felt that it was something that could have been resolved," Harrison said.
She was among those to whom Morse apologized following the comment, and Harrison said that his willingness to meet with community leaders and discuss his comment was "courageous."
Morse had been selected by Gov. Martin O'Malley from a field of 22 applications to join the board in May 2007 following Thomas Hiltz's resignation.
In the event of a vacancy -- such as Hiltz's -- the governor is responsible for appointing a new representative to the vacant post.
However, given the proximity of the November election -- when voters will elect candidates for Morse's former seat and the seat currently held by board president Cynthia Foley -- Ecker said he plans to propose to Gov. Martin O'Malley that the board operate with four members until the election occurs.
####
