Teachers in NYC counter-sue White principal who banned Black History Month lessons, then sued after she was demoted following reports of her ‘racism’ – Patricia Catania has likened herself to Mahatma Gandhi, ‘maligned’ by minority teachers
A former NYC school head, Patricia Catania, has sued some of the school’s teachers, charging that they waged a “racist campaign” to oust her as she disciplined struggling teachers
Catania who is White was the former principal at Bronx Intermediate School 224, was accused of racism by her staff and students in February of 2018
Language Arts teacher Mercedes Liriano said Catania ordered her not to teach black history to her students, most of whom are Black, during Black History Month
Her students said Catania also confiscated their Black History Month projects after the city board of education launched an investigation into the matter
Catania’s last day at IS 224 was June 6, when she took a new role as assistant principal at Health Opportunities High School in the Bronx along with a pay cut
Reacting to the board decision, Catania sued the affected teachers and the teachers union, alleging they were using allegations of racism as a ruse to get her replaced by a black principal
In her court filing Catania who likened herself to Mahatma Ghandi, is suggesting the complainants were off base calling her racist
The teachers have since filed a counter suit, alleging the former principal has discriminated against them
‘She tried to spin the whole thing as if we were the racists, when she was the racist one’ says Liriano
Former middle school principal Patricia Catania [photo], believes her demotion and posting away from IS 224 in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx, is an orchestrated campaign by minority teachers who she’s accused her of racism. she was removed in the wake of the controversy she stirred when she banned a Black History assignment at the middle school in 2018
A former New York public school principal who banned a Black History Month assignment is engaged in a back-and-forth legal battle with her teachers as both sides accuse each other of racism.
Teachers have launched legal action against Patricia Catania, the former principal of IS 224 in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx, in the latest turn of what has become an ugly, almost two-year-squabble.
Catania, who is white, had filed a lawsuit against the teachers, suggesting they were off base calling her racist, and were really mounting a coup to replace her with a black principal at IS 224.
Now, a counter-suit filed this month by the targeted teachers and the teachers union claims their former school head discriminated against them.
Catania, who is white, had filed a lawsuit against the teachers, suggesting they were off base calling her racist, and were really mounting a coup to replace her with a black principal at IS 224.
Now, a counter-suit filed this month by the targeted teachers and the teachers union claims their former school head discriminated against them.
In a counter-suit Language Arts teacher Mercedes Liriano [photo], claims Patricia Catania, her former boss at IS 224, a middle school in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx, NYC, ordered her to stop teaching black history to her students during Black History Month in 2018
Multiple teachers at IS 224 [photo], accused Catania of making racist comments about black teachers, including telling peer administrators that black teachers are less knowledgeable of the subjects they teach than teachers of other races and that they were only useful for keeping students in line during classes
Protesters [photo], came out in support of language teacher Mercedes Lirianio and reinstating the Black History Month assignment at Intermediate School 224 in 2018. Liriano who is Black claimed school principal Catania, herself White, was obstructing teaching students about their culture
In February of each school year, which is Black History Month, Mercedes Liriano taught her sixth-grade language arts classes about the Harlem Renaissance.
The veteran Bronx teacher instructed her middle-school students, most of whom are black, like her, to research and present on famous artists and writers from that period. However, this time around school principal Patricia Catania ordered Liriano to stop teaching black history to her students.
‘Anytime she tried to come after my teachers, it would be an issue,’ Liriano told Mic more than a year ago.
‘She made a lot of the harassment for me a personal thing. It became beyond personal when she said my students couldn’t learn about black history.’
Liriano claims Catania told her she didn’t understand why a language arts, or English, teacher would be teaching black history during Black History Month.
Liriano said she’d been teaching the same lesson on the Harlem Renaissance and the writings of Frederick Douglass every Black History Month for more than 14 years without being questioned.
A petition demanding Catania allow Liriano to carry on with her lessons was signed by at least 71 students.
‘Calling me a racist is not unlike calling Mahatma Gandhi a violent man — there are just no facts to support the charge,’ Catania said in this sworn statement included in her law suit against the teachers and their union
The city’s Department of Education launched an investigation the same month.
Less than a week after the probe began, Catania confiscated the Black History Month projects from Liriano’s class, saying they couldn’t have them back until the investigation was completed.
‘She’s trying to stop us from teaching our students about their own culture,’ Liriano said at the time.
The Board has not released the findings from its investigation, but confirmed it opted to re-assign Catania, whose annual salary also decreased from $164,702 to $132,337.
Catania’s last day at IS 224 was June 6, when she took a new role as assistant principal at Health Opportunities High School in the Bronx.
In June, Catania struck back at the teachers and their union with her legal action suggesting that she was the target of a ‘maligning, malevolent and racist campaign to replace her as principal of I.S. 224 with a black administrator.
‘Calling me a racist is not unlike calling Mahatma Gandhi a violent man — there are just no facts to support the charge,’ said Catania in a sworn statement included in her legal filing.
Less than a week after the probe began, Catania confiscated the Black History Month projects from Liriano’s class, saying they couldn’t have them back until the investigation was completed.
‘She’s trying to stop us from teaching our students about their own culture,’ Liriano said at the time.
The Board has not released the findings from its investigation, but confirmed it opted to re-assign Catania, whose annual salary also decreased from $164,702 to $132,337.
Catania’s last day at IS 224 was June 6, when she took a new role as assistant principal at Health Opportunities High School in the Bronx.
In June, Catania struck back at the teachers and their union with her legal action suggesting that she was the target of a ‘maligning, malevolent and racist campaign to replace her as principal of I.S. 224 with a black administrator.
‘Calling me a racist is not unlike calling Mahatma Gandhi a violent man — there are just no facts to support the charge,’ said Catania in a sworn statement included in her legal filing.
Liriano said. ‘She tried to spin the whole thing as if we were the racists, when she was the racist one’ says Liriano [photo]. She believes the banned Black History month assignment, ‘brought to light’ Catania’s racist behavior as an administrator
‘However, none of this mattered to my cancellers. They decided I had to go, and that was that,’ Catania concludes.
The teachers fired back with their litigation this month, arguing their former boss discriminated against faculty members of color.
The banned Black History month assignment, ‘brought to light what she was doing to us, but there was so much more: harassment, retaliation, targeting teachers of color,’ Liriano told The Washington Post.
‘She tried to spin the whole thing as if we were the racists, when she was the racist one’.
The teachers fired back with their litigation this month, arguing their former boss discriminated against faculty members of color.
The banned Black History month assignment, ‘brought to light what she was doing to us, but there was so much more: harassment, retaliation, targeting teachers of color,’ Liriano told The Washington Post.
‘She tried to spin the whole thing as if we were the racists, when she was the racist one’.
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