The black director of diversity, equity and inclusion at a California university was fired after she asked for definitions of terms like anti-racism, leading to her being labeled a “right-wing extremist” by Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza.
Dr. Tabia Lee began working at De Anza College, located outside San Jose, in August 2021. Since then, she has opposed being forced to join a “socialist network” and has struggled to run a ‘Jewish inclusion’ event to the school, according to Within higher education.
Additionally, Lee said he earned the ire of the school’s student body and administration for his refusal to use terms like ‘Latinx’ and ‘Filipinx’ while wondering why the letter B in ‘Black’ was capitalized but not the W. in white’.
He argued that the use of gender pronouns was akin to “toxic ideologies around race” and that the constant discussion of the issue was causing discomfort for those “who identify as gender fluid or struggle with gender dysphoria.”
Lee, a University of Phoenix graduate with a Ph.D. from the University of California Irvine, was also branded a white supremacist and accused of “white explaining” and “white talk.”
Dr. Tabia Lee began working at De Anza College, located just outside of San Jose, in August 2021
One of those who reviewed Lee’s post at De Anza accused the educator of disrespecting Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza.
The official reasons for Lee’s dismissal accused her of not being able to work with other staff members, inability to accept constructive criticism. The school board wrote in a report that they did not expect Lee to improve in any of those areas.
De Anza College, the alma mater of Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and actress Teri Hatcher, has not commented publicly on Lee’s firing, saying internal staff affairs are confidential.
Speaking with Inside Higher Ed, Lee said he is considering filing a lawsuit against the school and is receiving support from the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism, also known as FAIR. A group that counts former Fox News host Megyn Kelly among its board members.
A lawyer for the group, Leigh Ann O’Neill, told the website that Lee’s work to encourage open inquiry and diversity of viewpoints and discussions was “important work.”
“We are often asked to support lawsuits, so if you decide to pursue legal action, we will be very eager to support you,” O’Neill said.
Lee said she received guidance that she was only supposed to support what she calls “third wave anti-racist ideology.”
The educator wrote about that term in a February 28 essay published on Substack titled Racial ideology in practice.
“I hope this article helps us better understand and more critically examine the ideologies being used to promote racial equity in our schools, organizations, and civic life,” Lee wrote on his LinkedIn page explaining the essay.
De Anza College, located just outside of San Jose, is the alma mater of Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and actress Terri Hatcher.
Lee went on to tell Inside Higher Education that among those who sat on a review board for her term review was a woman who had applied to become a member of a socialist group and who accused her of disrespecting Alicia Garza.
During that review, Lee said he was met with “really ugly opposition from third-wave anti-racist activists who don’t care too much about me because I haven’t uncritically supported their narratives or ways of knowing/working.”
Speaking of his refusal to use terms like LatinX and FilipinX, Lee said they did not reflect the “working class communities” where he had worked for decades.
“I found these terms to be linguistic imperialism and an inappropriate attempt to make beautiful languages conform to English-speaking social norms,” Lee said.
In another incident, Lee said he criticized the school for acknowledging that the wrong Native American tribe was De Anza College Indian land.
That dispute saw her labeled as ‘b****’ and ‘dictatorial’.
One Lee supporter, Sheena Mason, an adjunct professor at the Oneonta campus of the State University of New York and author of Theory of Racelessness: A Case for Antirace(ism), said Lee was put in her role of being ” the symbolic black figure”. women.’
‘So you’re black, so you’re supposed to think one way? How is that not dehumanizing?
Lee also said that the ‘awakening’ promoted by his office has slowed down the process of creating a more equal school.
Lee also said that the ‘awakening’ promoted by his office has slowed down the process of creating a more equal school.
He said “awakened” members of his office were using “divisive” techniques without offering solutions, simply accusing other staff of being “racist or not awakening enough”.
A month before being fired by De Anza, Lee resigned of the Center Joint School District in Antelope, California, accusing the agency of not doing more to help the district’s most vulnerable students.
In his resignation letter, Lee also accused the board of ignoring Black History Month and accused a board member of making “racist and homophobic” comments.
During his time on the board, Lee successfully campaigned to eliminate the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance at meetings.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has been at the forefront of the fight against “woke” ideologies on college campuses across his state.
In February, his administration blocked the teaching of a new Advanced Placement course on African American studies in high schools, saying it violates state law and is historically inaccurate.
So far, at least 25 states have considered legislation or other steps to limit how race and racism can be taught, according to an analysis of Education Week.
Eight states, all led by Republicans, have banned or limited the teaching of critical race theory or similar concepts through law or administrative action. The bans largely address what can be taught within the classroom.
