Chicago Board of Education meets after President Rev. Mitchell Johnson resigns over controversial posts

CHICAGO (WLS) — The Chicago Board of Education will meet Friday, just one day after the newly appointed president’s resignation.

Six board members appointed by the mayor will meet Friday morning for their first official meeting without the Rev. Mitchell Johnson.

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Rev. Johnson resigned on Thursday after a Jewish publication exposed dozens of his controversial Facebook posts about women, 9-11 conspiracy theories and views on Israel.

Jewish mothers of Chicago Public Schools students are relieved he is no longer at the helm of the Chicago Board of Education.

“My children are visibly Orthodox in the Chicago Public Schools, and I have to tell you that when I heard that our mayor would appoint someone to such a position, I had a visceral reaction,” said Estie Spero, a Jewish mother of students at the Chicago Public Schools.

Governor JB Pritzker and more than forty of Chicago’s fifty city council members shared the same reaction after seeing the anti-Semitic statements.

Some are now questioning Mayor Brandon Johnson’s vetting process for his newly appointed school board.

“How have they been vetted and should we dig deeper into their background and make sure they are qualified to be in charge of children?” 50th Ward Ald. Debra Silverstein, the only Jewish member of the Chicago City Council, said.

So far, the new school board members have declined the City Council’s request to appear in the council chambers and answer questions.

Mayor Brandon Johnson said he will work quickly to find a new board president during the first regular meeting on Friday morning.

A week after he was sworn in, the president of the Chicago school board resigned Thursday amid controversial social media posts.

The now-former president of the Chicago Board of Education, the Rev. Mitchell Johnson, apologized for the messages on Wednesday, but more disturbing information surfaced on Thursday, leading to additional calls on him to resign.

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Conspiracy theories about 9/11 and anti-women posts were enough for Mayor Brandon Johnson to call for Rev. Johnson’s resignation. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and nearly forty councilors also demanded Rev. Johnson’s resignation, with many wondering why the mayor appointed him in the first place.

Chicago council members demanded to know how Pastor Johnson was vetted to become Mayor Johnson’s choice for president of the Chicago school board.

“I always want to ask if the vetting process is important to all of us,” said 25th Ward Ald. said Byron Sigcho-Lopez.

“I think a normal person would think, the average person would think, that a simple search on social media would have turned up this and automatically disqualified him,” 11th Ward Ald. said Nicole Lee.

“How have they been vetted and should we dig deeper into their background and make sure they are qualified to be in charge of children?” said 50th Ward Ald. Debra Silverstein, the only Jewish member of the Chicago City Council.

Rev. Johnson openly admitted in a radio program on his Facebook page that he is a regular user of social media. Several of his posts included anti-Israel sentiments and conspiracy theories surrounding 9/11, both topics he spoke about on the radio show.

“I believe the Israeli government is engaged in genocide,” Pastor Johnson said on the show.

“The way those towers were built, they could have withstood an airplane crashing into the side of them,” he also said.

In addition, an anti-women post was discovered.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson released the following statement Thursday:

“Today I asked the President of the Chicago School Board of Education (BOE), Rev. Mitchell Johnson, to resign, and he resigned effective immediately. Pastor Mitchell Johnson’s statements were not only hurtful but also deeply disturbing. I want to be clear: anti-Semitic, misogynistic, and conspiratorial statements are unacceptable. My administration is committed to upholding the mission of transforming our public education system. It has become clear that his continued participation in the BOE would hinder the important work we must accomplish for our schools, identifying a qualified individual who shares our commitment to educational excellence and will serve with an unwavering commitment to the values we hold dear . I remain steadfast in my commitment to working with all stakeholders to ensure that every child in Chicago has access to the quality education they value. Protecting and empowering Chicago’s public school students remains our North Star. Friday’s Board of Education meeting will proceed as scheduled under current BOE bylaws.

Rev. Johnson’s questionable background did not come to light overnight. A day after he was sworn in as president of the Chicago school board last week, the mayor stood by him as questions were raised about why Reverend Johnson was permanently disbarred from the bar in Ohio. Prior to this, 41 alders had asked the new board to appear before the council, but they refused.

“I certainly think that if we had had the opportunity to have them before us, we could have asked some of these questions before they were installed as full board members,” said Ald. Lee said.

As more of Pastor Johnson’s opinions about women and Jewish people emerged, more and more city leaders and parents responded Thursday evening, questioning why Johnson gave him the job in the first place.

“I would certainly be concerned about the safety of my children and the safety of all Jewish children in the system,” said Yehudis Goldfarb, a Jewish mother of Chicago Public Schools students.

Jewish mothers of Chicago public school students are relieved that Rev. Johnson is no longer at the helm of the Chicago Board of Education.

Late Thursday afternoon, Mayor Johnson confirmed his sudden appearance on his hand-picked school president at one o’clock Chicago Police Department news conference announcing hate crime charges following recent shooting of a Jewish man on the North Side.

“Pastor Johnson, I had a conversation with him and asked him to resign, and he did,” Mayor Johnson said.

Reverend Johnson issued a lengthy apology to the Jewish community on Wednesday evening.

Some city leaders, including the city’s only Jewish councilwoman, Debra Silverstein of the 50th Ward, are questioning Mayor Johnson’s vetting process for his newly appointed school board.

“How have they been vetted and should we dig deeper into their background and make sure they are qualified to be in charge of children?” Ald. Silverstein said.

So far, the new school board members have declined the council’s request to appear in council chambers and answer questions.

The board will meet for its regular meeting on Friday

Gov. Pritzker released the following statement earlier on Thursday:

“Every person charged with the stewardship of the Chicago Public School Board must exemplify focused, inclusive and steadfast leadership. The views expressed in today’s chairs – anti-Semitism, misogyny, fringe conspiracy theories – clearly do not meet that standard. It is up to our students, families and teachers to provide the highest quality education, and that starts at the top by setting a positive example of kindness and inclusivity. The best interest of our schools and our children is for the President to resign.”

Rev. Johnson’s resignation comes next the entire previous Board of Education resigned amid Mayor Johnson’s report Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez wants to oust.