Hunter College said on Wednesday that it placed a professor on leave days after their remarks about Black students surfaced in a local public school meeting.
The president of the New York City public university, Nancy Cantor, said in a statement that a professor was placed on leave pending the university’s investigation of “abhorrent remarks” made earlier this month during a virtual meeting of the New York City School District 3 Community Education Council.
Cantor did not name the professor in the news release, and Hunter College did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.
The announcement, however, came after the university has faced mounting pressure to take action against Allyson Friedman, a tenured associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, over her comments during the meeting.
The meeting took place on Feb. 10 and was dedicated to discussing proposals by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration to close or move several schools on Manhattan’s Upper West Side.
While a Black student spoke against the proposals, Friedman, whose children go to school in the district, could be heard speaking.
“They’re too dumb to know they’re in a bad school,” she said, according to a recording of the meeting. “Apparently, Martin Luther King said it. If you train a Black person well enough, they’ll know to use the back. You don’t have to tell them anymore.”
Other attendees in the meeting, which was made public, were visibly shocked by the comments before another attendee interjected.
“What you’re saying is absolutely hearable here. You’ve got to stop,” an attendee is heard saying.
Friedman appeared to be referencing comments made at the top of the meeting by the district’s superintendent, Reginald Higgins.
Higgins, who referred NBC News to the city’s education department for comment, quoted Carter G. Woodson, a scholar of Black history.
“‘If you make a man think that he is justly an outcast, you do not have to order him to the back door,’” Higgins said. “‘He will go without being told.’”
Friedman has not responded to requests for comment on her remarks or the college’s decision to place her on leave.
In a statement to The New York Times, Friedman said that she was “trying to explain the concept of systemic racism” to her child by referencing an example of an obviously racist trope, and did not know her mic was on.
“My complete comments make clear these abhorrent views are not my own, nor were they directed at any student or group,” Dr. Friedman told the outlet. “I fully support these courageous students in their efforts to stop school closures.”
“However, I recognize these comments caused harm and pain, while that was not my intent, I do truly apologize,” she added.
Hunter College said in a statement earlier this week that one of its employees made “abhorrent remarks” during the meeting and that it was investigating the matter. The university did not name Friedman.
Outrage ensued nonetheless. District parents held a press conference on Tuesday to condemn the remarks. An emergency CEC meeting is scheduled for Thursday evening to discuss the comments.
In a statement, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani stressed that “the racist outburst at the recent CEC 3 meeting completely disregarded basic decency and caused deep harm in the school community.”
“This is unacceptable,” he added. “My administration has reached out to CUNY to discuss this, and we are working alongside the district to provide support and ensure accountability.”
Hunter College’s Black Student Union also issued a joint statement with four other student groups decrying the remarks and rejecting her apology.
“Regardless of whether it was said under the assumption of being muted, the sentiment itself is rooted in violent and painful history of racial segregation and dehumanization,” the group said in a statement. “This rhetoric is incompatible with the responsibilities of an educator entrusted with molding young minds.”
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