A Michigan school official posted offensive Facebook memes. Now protesters want him gone.
Residents in an Eastern Michigan community are demanding a school board leader’s resignation over anti-Muslim and anti-African American social media posts.
A small group of protesters gathered Monday before a previously scheduled Roseville Community Schools Board of Education meeting in Roseville, Mich., waving “Stop Hate” signs and shouting, “Alfredo must go,” according to news reports. They were criticizing Alfredo Francesconi, the school board’s vice president, who has come under fire for posting memes on Facebook suggesting that Muslims are terrorists and African Americans are unpatriotic.
A protest organizer, Meriam Uppal, told the Macomb Daily that she strongly objected to what she called Francesconi’s “bigotry and hatred, Islamophobia and racism.”
“I need people to understand that it is not OK to post things like this for the public to see, especially when this person is the member of the Roseville Community School Board,” Uppal told the newspaper. “Kids look up to these people. What message is Mr. Francesconi sending by sharing these types of images on Facebook?”
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When asked about the controversial posts, Francesconi told NBC affiliate WDIV: “I have nothing to say. It’s all you’re going to hear, okay?”
Board President Teresa Genest told reporters she would be “upset” had the comments been directed at her, according to the station.
Although she did not publicly condemn Francesconi’s actions, she did apologize for them.
“He is a great board member, but his beliefs are his beliefs, and everyone else has their beliefs,” Genest said, according to C&G Newspapers. “It was brought to his attention, and we’re sorry about that if it offended anybody; it was not his intention by any means.”
But, Genest said, the school board cannot easily remove Francesconi from his position because he is an elected official.
According to the Macomb Daily: “Under state law, the only conditions that allow for removal of a school board member include conviction for a felony; neglect or failure to file the acceptance of office, to take the oath of office or to give or renew an official bond required by law; ceasing to possess the legal qualifications for holding office; or moving his or her residence from the school district.”
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The newspaper added that Superintendent John Kment, “who is employed by the school board, would not have the authority to remove Francesconi from office. Genest and other board members could seek to have him removed if he was found to be in violation of Michigan Election Law relating to school and community college elections.”
Francesconi shared a meme on his personal Facebook page Nov. 10, portraying a group of African Americans destroying a police vehicle. “Want to stop riots?” it reads. “Play the national anthem. They’ll all sit down.”
A day later, he shared a post showing President-elect Donald Trump with the words: “No I’m not going to kill the gays, make slavery legal, and take away women’s rights. I’m not a Muslim.”
Then on Nov. 19, he shared two more images that drew public scorn. One shows the World Trade Center ablaze, saying, “How did we go from this to being afraid of offending Muslims?”
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The other states: “Number of Jewish terrorist attacks since 9/11: zero. Number of Christian terrorist attacks since 9/11: zero. Number of Islamic terrorist attacks since 9/11: 26855. Not all religions are the same.”
Share this articleShare“I read them, and I agreed with them and I [shared] them,” Francesconi said last month, according to C&G Newspapers. Neither Francesconi nor Genest could be reached for comment.
Dawud Walid, executive director of the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told C&G Newspapers that Francesconi has shared offensive Facebook posts in the past.
“Our primary concern is the signal this gives to the district and especially students,” he told the newspaper.
“I’m concerned about the Muslim and American children in this district,” he added. “We have a man with a leadership position in the school that is making anti-Muslim posts that are also false. That’s where the concern is.”
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Uppal, the protest organizer, told the Macomb Daily that she is a Roseville High School graduate but that she has “long since moved out of the district because of its racist behaviors. I now live in Rochester Hills where the community is diverse and I don’t have to fear my daughter being judged by the color of her skin or the religion she follows.”
But, she said, she has cousins who are still in the Roseville district — “cousins are Muslim, they shouldn’t have to see these types of things from their school board.”
Still, on Monday night, some counter-protesters spoke out in support of Francesconi’s constitutional rights.
“What I am for is freedom of speech,” Evelena Scott told WDIV. “At what point do feelings trump someone’s opinions?”
As the controversy over Francesconi’s Facebook feed began to swell, he took to social media last month to share yet another meme, this one a modified “Peanuts” strip showing Charlie Brown chatting with Franklin.
“Racism sucks,” Franklin says.
“Being falsely accused of racism sucks too,” Charlie responds.
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