Dueling groups verbally backed and bashed Palm Beach County School Board member Edwin Ferguson on Oct. 15, about a month after his description of slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk as “a racist bigot” sparked an enraged response that included death threats.
Black religious and community leaders held a news conference and prayer vigil in support of Ferguson, whom they said was being unfairly attacked for speaking the truth about Kirk and for offering guidance to teachers who had been warned by Florida Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas that some public comments about Kirk could cost them their jobs.
Two hours later, Kirk supporters arrived with large flags and placards showing their support for President Donald Trump and for Kirk, who was shot to death on a Utah university campus on Sept. 10.
Kirk’s death sparked a wave of grief among many Republicans, who threatened retribution to those whom they saw as celebrating his killing. Democrats, meanwhile, pointed to what they describe as the many racist, homophobic, sexist and anti-Semitic comments he made in arguing that they won’t mourn a bigot.
The dueling sides almost came to blows before the 5 p.m. start of the school board meeting and occasionally berated one another inside during the public comments portion of the meeting. More law-enforcement officers were on the scene, and meeting attendees were directed to pass through a metal detector instead of undergoing the typical security procedure of having a security guard wave a wand over those looking to enter the meeting room.
No district policy was established or repealed, and no consequential votes were taken by board members. But the meeting underscored deep divisions, largely along racial and political lines, about how Kirk should be remembered and about the limits of free speech.
Ferguson’s backers made clear they share his view of Kirk.
“If you make racist statements over and over again, I would deem you to be a racist,” said Alfred Fields, president of the West Palm Beach chapter of the NAACP. “Just because you were murdered doesn’t make you a martyr for free speech.”
Kirk’s supporters called for Ferguson to be removed from office after he said: “Unless you as a parent or you as a teacher feel bad, because I as a teacher don’t miss a racist, a racist bigot at that, I don’t see how you’re going to be at risk of losing your teaching certificate. When we talk about the Holocaust, I’ve yet to hear a person of the Jewish faith say that I miss Adolf Hitler.”
The comments, made during a board meeting held a week after Kirk’s death, infuriated his supporters, who flooded Ferguson with profane, racist and threatening messages. One caller said they knew where he lives and would burn his house down. Another threatened to blow his head off. Ferguson reported those threats to police.
Willy Guardiola, a local GOP activist who called on Gov. Ron DeSantis to remove Ferguson from office, condemned those threats of violence.
“Any type of violence, any type of threat, to me violence isn’t the way,” he said, adding that he hoped to “convert” Ferguson to his view of Kirk and apologize for his comments about the slain activist. “I’m here for conversion. That’s what I’m trying to do. Now, if he doesn’t want to convert, then, you know, why don’t you step down?”
DeSantis has denounced what he and other Republicans say is an inappropriate celebration of Kirk’s death among Democrats. The governor, however, has not moved to suspend Ferguson, who was first elected to the board in 2022.
Dedrick Straghn, president of the South Palm Beach County chapter of the NAACP, said Kirk supporters calling for Ferguson’s removal are being hypocritical.
“The same individuals who defend Kirk’s right to spew division under the banner of free speech are now condemning board member Ferguson for exercising the same right,” Straghn said. “Free speech does not belong to only one side of the political aisle. The right to speak truthfully about hate is just as protected as the right to spread it.”
One Kirk supporter after another said the slain activist was not a bigot and urged those who describe him to review his public statements and writings.
Some of that content included questioning the “brain processing power” of Ivy League-educated Black women like former MSNBC host Joy Reid, former first lady Michelle Obama, the late Texas congressman Sheila Jackson Lee and Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Kirk said the women “had to go steal a white person’s slot to go be taken somewhat seriously.”
Kirk called passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which struck down segregation, a “huge mistake” that “created a beast, and that beast has now turned into an anti-white weapon.”
Two years ago, Kirk said: “Happening all the time in urban America, prowling Blacks go around for fun to go target white people. That’s a fact. It’s happening more and more.”
And last year, Kirk said: “If I see a Black pilot, I’m going to be like, boy, I hope he’s qualified.”
Told of some of those comments and asked why a Black person would not view them as racist, Lonnie Weinberg, a committee vice chair of the Republican Party of Palm Beach Party, paused for a moment.
“It’s hard for me to answer that question,” he said. “I’m not Black, and I can’t put myself in that position. We all know (diversity, equity and inclusion) is a problem.”
Even as Ferguson supporters repeated some of Kirk’s comments during the meeting, the late activist’s backers held fast to their support of him as a role model. And they excoriated Ferguson for his comments.
“Ferguson compared a young man that started a movement trying to bring awareness to a lot of uneducated people on college campuses to Hitler,” Robert Rosetto said. “What a stupid and hateful thing to say. Comparing Kirk to Hitler is essentially telling some that violence, even murder, is an acceptable response to people you disagree with or consider evil. Frankly, if anyone is a racist bigot, it’s Mr. Ferguson.”
Lynne Hubbard said “privilege” has led some Kirk supporters to believe they can force Ferguson out because they don’t agree with his views of the late activist.
“Understand me,” she said. “This has nothing to do with his opinions. We could care less about what he thought. We’ve been called worse by better people. The point is our freedom of speech. You think you have the right to tell us what to say and how to respond to what he said about us and our community.”
Palm Beach County School Board members choose their words in Kirk fray
After the public had its say on the topic, board members had their say. Ferguson’s colleagues on the board have largely steered clear of the controversy.
Erica Whitfield offered support for the First Amendment and decried violence.
“Violence in any form is never the solution,” she said. “I believe we need to remember that when we choose our words.”
Gloria Branch reminded the audience of remarks she made during an Oct. 8 workshop, when she said: “Thank you to everyone that has reached out since our last board meeting regarding the personal opinions that were made. These are not the mission of our school district. This distraction takes us away from our top priorities and what we are trying to accomplish.”
Straghn had blasted board members as “cowards” for not publicly coming to Ferguson’s defense even as he received death threats.
When it was his turn to speak during the meeting, Kirk supporters booed. “Scumbag!” one person yelled.
“The last 30 days or so have been somewhat interesting as evidenced by the heckler in the back,” he said. “At all times, let us be mindful of other people’s right to free speech, especially when making comments that are not discriminatory. But even if the comments are discriminatory, virtually nothing said — whether perceived as fact or fiction − warrants threats of property damage, threats of violence, threats of death, nor continual harassment as is happening in the back against persons who you disagree with.”
After the meeting, Ferguson said he stands by his previous comments and will not step down.
“I’m totally accountable for what I say,” he said. “I don’t take back anything that I said. I want to reiterate: It pains me that any person was assassinated, killed or murdered. It’s unfortunate that people tried to bully me, scare me, threaten me with loss of life. For what? I’m standing here. I’m standing firm. I will not be bullied by anyone, any place, any time.”
Wayne Washington is a journalist covering education for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at wwashington@pbpost.com. Help support our work; subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Ferguson supporters, detractors square off at Palm Beach County School Board meeting
Reporting by Wayne Washington, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
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