Neufeld’s use of slur, fellow Chilliwack trustee’s support ‘inexcusable, unconscionable’: board chair

CHILLIWACK (NEWS 1130) — Just a few days after Chilliwack school trustee Barry Neufeld came under fire for using a slur on social media; another school trustee is coming to his defence, prompting the board chair to call for both to resign.

Last week Neufeld took to Facebook and referred to journalists at the Chilliwack Progress by name, using a derogatory word that refers to people with developmental disabilities to denigrate them.

RELATED: Barry Neufeld under fire for Facebook post using ableist slur

The post was first changed, to read “three radical lefties” and later deleted entirely.

This weekend, school trustee Darrell Furgason defended Neufeld’s use of the slur by referring to online definitions and Wikipedia.

“According to Wikipedia, Barry is entitled to use the word,” Furgason wrote.

Willow Reichelt, board chair with the Chilliwack Board of Education says it’s inexcusable that Furgason defended Neufeld.

“There are some issues where there is no legitimate debate, there’s a wrong side and a right side,” she says.

“Trustee Neufeld’s use of the word, the ‘R-word’ was inexcusable. I’m disgusted that anyone would defend it let alone a school trustee. This is not reflective of the views of the majority of the board that’s certainly not the kind of behaviour that’s promoted or tolerated by our dedicated and caring staff.”

The president of the BC Teachers Federation, Teri Mooring, agrees with Reichelt adding there is no excuse for school trustees to use dehumanizing language against others.

“It’s unimaginable that other trustees are defending it in any way,” she says.

Reichelt is calling on both trustees to step down immediately.

“Barry Neufeld needs to step down, and it’s unconscionable that anyone would be defending him, especially other elected trustees. If those views are represented by other trustees they really need to consider their role on the school board as well,” Mooring adds.

But in an email statement to NEWS 1130, Furgason says he is not trying to defend Neufeld.

“I am surprised that the MSM [mainstream media] are suggesting that Barry’s use of the [‘R-word’] is in reference to children who are developmentally challenged. That is an offence to Barry, and to me. We support all children in SD33, and you should know that. And we certainly support parents in School District 33 who have developmentally challenged children in our schools,” Furgason says.

In the statement, Furgason claims the word is meant to describe someone as “foolish or stupid person.”

School board divided

Reichelt says, unfortunately, there is a divide in the school board with some members who don’t support modern educational practices and the Ministry of Education and the Human Rights Code.

“People are really hurt by these things. Certain people on our board think that they can just say whatever they want and that they have this freedom of speech attitude and I’m sorry if you’re on a board of public education, you are supposed to be looking after the welfare of the students in our district. If you are saying, hateful and discriminatory things about people that hurts people — it’s not okay.”

She hopes the minister of education will looking into amending the school act to work with “rogue” trustees.

“People aren’t committed to using their role in a way that supports public education and supports kids I don’t, I honestly don’t know what to do about it. I’m very frustrated,” she says.

Reichelt and Mooring tell NEWS 1130 as schools grapple with the pandemic, they’ve had to use valuable time addressing the hateful and discriminatory comments made by their peers.

“We’re in the middle of rewriting our strategic plan and focusing all that on all the great learning initiatives in our town. I should not have to be explaining to people that the use of the ‘R-word’ is not acceptable in 2020,” Reichelt says.

“The people of Chilliwack and the students of Chilliwack and teachers in Chilliwack and family Chilliwack deserve so much better than this,” Mooring says.