Kirk, who represents Ward 7 in the city’s New North End, should resign, said parent Alison Segar, in a post on the Support Our Burlington Schools Facebook page.
“I have just looked at his Facebook page which spews forth hatred towards many of the groups of people represented in our school district. I think we should be calling for his resignation,” Segar wrote. “I am embarrassed that he is a representative on our board and that he is part of the decision making process. UGH.”
In a telephone interview with Seven Days, Segar said she wanted to hear what Kirk had to say about the page. But she also vowed to bring to the school board her request that he resign. “I will certainly make my feelings known at the next school board meeting that I can attend,” Segar said.
Kirk did not immediately respond Tuesday to a request for comment.
Kirk’s Facebook posts defend the Confederate flag, suggest immigrant students ask schools to make too many changes for them, and poke fun at the Black Lives Matter movement. Kirk’s term runs through 2018. As of Tuesday evening, his Facebook page was publicly accessible.
Many of the posts on his page are shared from websites such as Just a Southern Thang, Right Wing News and, in the case of a post featuring a woman tied up in her underwear, I Love Golfing.
Some posts go back several years; others are more recent. On Monday, for example, Kirk shared a RudeFunny.com post that declared, “If I was a teacher, I would staple Burger King applications on failed tests.”
Some of the criticism about Kirk’s posts circulated among teacher union members who said they did not want to be quoted by name in Seven Days. The union and the school board are in the midst of heated labor negotiations, with a mediation session set for Wednesday and possible strike looming Thursday.
Here is a sampling of Kirk’s posts:
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This is a small example of a school board that is driving Burlington Schools into the ground!
The teachers union has to negotiate with these people?! No wonder there’s a strike!
What kind of trash elected this trash??
What sort of people do we have on our School Board? I wonder what the voters of District 7 think about this? Is this the man we want representing us, and making decisions affecting the education of our kids?
Wow! These liberals are out of control. There isn’t one offensive item on his FB page. In fact a few items I will have to steal and share!
This is a disgrace. Not acceptable are all. It is absolutely fear mongering. Public school is not a place for anything of this sort where children’s lives are in the balance. It is sickening and should not be tolerated.
I have an 8 yo at Champlain elementary. I’m a very busy person and I have trotted along these past few years assuming that reasonable folks are doing their best in their leadership roles to responsibly address the important issues facing this community and acting In the best interests of my child and all our children. I am disappointed in the extreme to see that someone who brings so little to the table is involved in any way with the ongoing teachers union discussions. Why would someone with such a narrow world view be on this board? I don’t get it. In fact, why would such a person want to be on this board? As I write this a friend points out this board is paying severance to the prior two incompetent superintendents (our tax dollars) in addition to the current salary: how much money is that altogether, and isn’t the board responsible for using our tax dollars to pay those extra salaries instead of distributing the monies to teachers who certainly should be paid more? With tools like Kirk on the board, this starts to make a bit more sense, doesn’t it?
Ah yes, another graduate from the Donald Trump School of Public Service. Class act…
Why do you think Kirk was voted in.It wasn’t for social skills it’s because we’ve seen a 45% tax increase in 5 years and if you live on social security like I do your hurting and want to know when some relief is coming.
The easy to offend are easy to manipulate
Always good to hear from the “think of the children” but “don’t pay the greedy teachers” people. Who knows how deeply seeded these beliefs are for him. It certainly calls for some questions. At very least, he should get a huge slap on the wrist for being dumb enough to post stuff like this on facebook regardless of the intent behind doing so.
Headline should read: Fake controversy created by School Union to shift blame for upcoming strike!
Paper falls for it, hook, line, and sinker.
Headline should read: School Union creates fake controversy to shift blame for upcoming strike!
Paper falls for it hook, line, and sinker.
We are cultivating a society where people are going to have to choose their words so carefully, or maybe just not speak at all for fear of some sort of social exclusion, or financial retribution through employment. This scares me.
Kids in schools (probably even in the district he represents) are learning cyber safety and that anything you put out there can come back to you for YEARS into the future – case in point. He can hate all he wants on the inside, but to be a school board member is who advertising his hate is controversial to say the least. His lack of judgment and knowledge of Facebook security might very well cost him his position as a school board member. This seems like an obvious consequence to me.
Are the Facebook posts offensive? Absolutely. Is this guy an idiot? Quite possibly. But is this level of snooping newsworthy? Seems to me David Kirk should be judged on the basis of his actual record on the school board (whatever that is) and not on public shaming based on personal posts to social media. I share Brian M’s concern about the thought police taking over public discourse. Do a little digging into the Burlington schools parent’s group on FB for some of the more absurd examples.
Regarding Daniel L’s comments on “reasonable folks” on the school board. Some are just that – people trying to do well for our city and our kids. But probably a majority is there to push a personal agenda – whether it’s cutting taxes or increased spending for pet projects and personal causes. I personally look with suspicion at anyone one on the school board who doesn’t have any “skin in the game,” i.e., kids in the school system. What is it that motivates them to take on such a time consuming and miserable job?
Part of the problem is that most school board elections are uncontested. This provides an easy opening for nut jobs like Mr. Kirk to get on the school board. Until school board elections are contested, and a moderate slate of candidates emerges, we are likely to see continued turmoil in Burlington public schools.
A few years ago, there was a call for City Council to create a procedure for recall of public officials. Without recall, we can’t remove an official who misappropriates funds or is convicted of a crime, never mind for tweets like these by school commissioner David Kirk, or for what Kurt Wright calls the inappropriate and offensive language of Michael McGarghan who has called for lynching President Obama. With so many young families moving to the nNE, wouldn’t you think we could choose more appropriate and inspirational people to represent us?
https://vtdigger.org/2016/10/18/burlington…
I totally agree that he seems to be racist and demeaning to students but I don’t understand how the first pic was demeaning to women. It wasnt like he made a broad generalization. He implied he wanted to golf more than have sex.. As a joke. Also, what did he even say about BLM? Racism is feeling one or more races are inferior or superior to others. Last I knew, BLM wasn’t a race. That seems irrelevant considering the ‘joke’ about immigration and everything but let us not jump to conclusions and instead work with only facts.
Either way, he should not be on the school board
Who cares
I was just reading all the comments and paying attention to the likes and dislikes… for every like/dislike I did I notice that if I clicked dislike a vote for like appeared..every single one of them, couple of them didn’t even record my my vote..mmm is this rigged??
It’s to bad that in this state/country a person has no right to voice their opinion, that you must think like everyone or else you are nutcase, a horrid person, follow everyone, don’t think for yourself, have no opinion..I know some teachers who put’s down kids in school if the student likes Trump or believes in our flag and supports our troops..Yes some teachers here in Vermont..is anything said about this, are the teachers brought on the carpet,,??? Nope..
Alison Segar isn’t upset so much at what David Kirk has on his Facebook. she’s upset that he doesn’t parrot her warped progressive ideology and that he has a seat on school board, while she didn’t get hers on City Council.
This isn’t a random parent, folks. This is an Alinskyite activist.
“If I [were] a teacher”*
3 out of the 4 made me smile .
I’m not sure what liking a few cartoons on Face Book has to do with being a School Board member. I guess it proves that there is a certain crowd always ready and eager to be offended . Congratulations .
OK OK , I was wrong . I showed the 4 cartoons to my wife a primary school Speech Pathologist . She believes they are ALL offensive . She was even more offended that they came from a school board member . She still loves me but is very happy that I don’t work in education or with kids .
Still a bit funny but she has convinced me that I am so so wrong !!
The voters have every right to elect a reactionary, racist and sexist xenophobe to represent them on the school board. It’s called democracy. The voters, the media and everyone with any common sense have the same right to condemn his reactionary, racist and xenophobic beliefs. At the very least, his behavior reflects very unhealthy examples for students, male and female alike. It’s called democracy.
I’d like to know about the education that this man received. Based on his posts, it seems deficient.
— A Random Parent of three children who have attended Burlington Public Schools
Brian Sullivan Greenspahn, and others, so you are suggesting that if anyone who post something on their FB that you don’t agree with are uneducated???? that’s racist if you ask me..