*A New Jersey high school teacher has been suspended for calling George Floyd a criminal in a profane rant that was caught on video.
The video (see below) shows Howard Zlotkin, 61, at William L. Dickinson High School going off inside a classroom about Floyd and Black Lives Matter. The incident occurred on April 28.
We reported earlier, the police killing of Floyd last May launched ongoing protests and a racial reckoning across the United States and around the world. Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, a white man, was found guilty last month on all counts of murdering Floyd, a Black man, on May 25 2020 by kneeling on his neck for more than nine minutes until he died. In video footage of the incident, Floyd can be heard repeating, “I can’t breathe.
Chauvin was convicted on April 20 of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He faces up to 40 years in prison.
“I hear people whining and crying about Black Lives Matter but George Floyd was a (expletive) criminal that was being arrested,” Zlotkin, who is white, told students in a video obtained by WNBC-TV.
Zlotkin noted his belief that Floyd was killed “because he wouldn’t comply with police.” His comments earned him a suspension without pay on April 29. Zlotkin has been teaching in the school district for 21 years.
“The District is appalled at the teacher’s unbecoming behavior and unprofessional outburst,” according to the statement. “His views do not represent the Jersey City Public School District’s focus on equity and the embrace of diversity.”
Zlotkin’s remarks also got him suspended at Hudson County Community College. In a statement, the college called his comments “offensive and derogatory.”
Zlotkin told the New York Times that the footage of his rant was a “very well-edited sound bite.” While he couldn’t further comment on the incident due to the pending investigation, Zlotkin said he would “love one day to give my side of the story.”
Here’s more from MSN:
Timmia Williams, one of the students in the class, told WNBC that Zlotkin appeared to target Black students during his rant and that Zlotkin assigned an essay to four Black students. The New York Times reported that the students were assigned to write about “why Black lives should matter.”
In class the next day, Zlotkin expressed anger over Williams refusing to write the essay.
“You know what, Timmia, don’t worry about it,” Zlotkin said in a second video obtained by WNBC. “You’re full of (expletive), too.”
“The comments made by this individual are not representative of our district or our city,” Mussab Ali, the Jersey City Board of Education president, announced on Facebook Friday, noting the board passed a resolution last June declaring racism a public health crisis.
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