Deplorable treatment of Broward superintendent

The Broward County School Board meeting to determine the fate of Superintendent Vickie Cartwright was absolutely excruciating. It was painful to sit through the vitriol, insults, not-very-subtle animosity and downright nastiness.

No one should be called a liar or a narcissist in a public forum. Unsubstantiated innuendos were referenced with little documentation, along with possible outright lies by a sitting, though unelected, board member.

Perhaps undoubtedly, Cartwright’s shortcomings and failures were true. The fact remains that an unelected cabal, appointed by the governor, brought forth this termination with no warning and a possible violation of the Sunshine law. That speaks volumes. That she carried out the direction from the elected board regarding public health in clear opposition to the governor’s non-scientific, anti public health stance is the true reason she was targeted.

There’s no denying that members of the African American community were unhappy with the exit of former Superintendent Robert Runcie, and few successors, if any, would have their support. For far too long, the concerns of this community and the deplorable condition of its schools went unanswered. These long-standing failures are shocking and speak more to the ineptitude of district leadership across the decades rather than the tenure of Dr. Cartwright.

There’s no question that everyone in every facet of life and government could do better. The question is, when you do not, should you be demonized, insulted and pilloried in public? In my 40-plus years of speaking before elected bodies on a wide range of issues, I cannot ever recall a more disgraceful display of cruelty and animus.

Siobhan McLaughlin,