So the obvious question is did Talib Sadiq’s skin color make A (or I should say THE) difference in winning the job of Amherst Regional Middle School counselor? Since no one has seen the semi-final list of candidates (yet) it’s a little hard to judge, not knowing the ethnicity of his competition.
http://www.amherstbulletin.com/story/id/55049/
But we know his Gulf War veteran status certainly was not a factor. Since this is Amherst, some folks probably view his military service even more disapprovingly than his arrest and conviction on a felony armed robbery charge.
Three years ago the nine-member Regional School Committee voted unanimously to require CORI background checks on all volunteers in the schools who could come into contact with children.
Only a week later, the Amherst School Committee voted 3-2 to oppose it, with three members having changed their vote from the week before (The Regional School Committee has 5 members of 9 from the Amherst School Committee, making Amherst the dog and the other three towns the tail.)
So why the flip flop after only one week? Well, they are all Democrats.
But seriously, Alisa Brewer said some concerned parents had called her worried about past criminal offenses like being arrested at a protest march; and one even suggested that possible “racial profiling” by police could lead to negative CORI results.
Yikes!
Current Amherst School Committee Chair Andy Churchill had also changed his vote. So I’m not surprised he would let a hiring committee stay in the dark about a candidate’s troubling background.
http://www.telegram.com/article/20070823/NEWS/708230746/1008/NEWSREWIND
(What's interesting about this article is that if Talib had simply waited one year his 15 years would be up and that conviction sealed for all time)
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