WI superintendent candidate deletes account after tweet on slur
MADISON, Wis. - A white candidate to be Wisconsin's top education official deleted her Twitter account and apologized after posting a message that she had been called a racial slur for Black people when she was 16 because "my lips were bigger than most and that was the reference given to me."
Deborah Kerr posted the message at 5:40 p.m. on Tuesday, the same day as Wisconsin's primary for state superintendent of schools. Kerr was the second-highest vote getter in the primary and advanced to the April general election.
The tweet from Kerr's account came in response to a question posed by the host of a podcast called Race Through Education, Madison Payton, who is also coordinator of curriculum and instruction at a New York City high school. Payton asked, "When was the first time someone called you the n-word? I was 18."
Kerr responded: "I was 16 in high school and white — my lips were bigger than most and that was the reference given to me."
Tweet from Deborah Kerr
Kerr said Wednesday in a statement, "I posted a tweet in response to a post that dealt with the issue of racism. While not intending the post to be interpreted as racist, the post was itself insensitive and so I shut my account down and removed the comment."
Payton's original tweet was still publicly available Wednesday, but Kerr’s response along with her Twitter account was gone. Screenshots of her message were circulating widely.
"I do not shy away from conversations about race," Kerr said. "In fact, I am very vocal about racism as it exists in its many forms and I intentionally point to it when I see it. I apologize for having posted something that was intended to be a part of the discussion of racism."
Deborah Kerr
It's a point Angela Lang, executive director of Black Leaders Organizing Communities (BLOC), calls hypocritical.
"She said that she doesn't shy away from issues of race, yet she blocked the Black women on Twitter who were trying to hold her accountable and have a discussion," Lang said.
"To have someone that thinks that what happened to her in this tweet equates to the lifelong oppression that communities of color have faced, it is not the same."
Angela Lang
With over 40 years in education, Kerr spent 13 as superintendent of Brown Deer schools where she stood up for students of color who dealt with racism. Now, groups near and far say her learning must continue.
"So often when we have the space to talk about it, we hope that people understand and are able to read the room that this is not a space for them," Payton told FOX6 News.
Madison Payton
Payton and Lang say Kerr should have just listened and found ways to drive change in education.
"If you're not in a community, you're there to ask questions, understand and then how do you move resources and center voices so that those things are addressed?" said Payton.
Deborah Kerr
In 2019, Kerr wrote a letter to the community after Brown Deer High School football players were called the n-word during a game. She said equity is not just another cliche and called for systemic change -- like youth education and more equitable school board policies.
Jill Underly, the superintendent of Pecatonica Area Schools, was the top vote-getter and will face Kerr on April 6. Her campaign spokesman had no immediate comment.
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