Alison Collins

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Alison M. Collins is an American community activist,[1] a real estate consultant,[2] and a former educator.[3] Collins has served as one of seven elected commissioners on the San Francisco Board of Education since January 7, 2019.[4] During her tenure, she came into national attention for[5][6][7] changing the merit-based admission policy at Lowell High School, and accusations of racism for a series of tweets she wrote in 2016 targeting Asian Americans.[8][9] The tweets led to Collins being stripped of her title as Vice-President of the Board on March 25, 2021.[10] In response she filed an $87-million lawsuit against the San Francisco Unified School District and San Francisco Board of Education on March 31, 2021, which was subsequently dismissed by a federal judge.[11] Collins also attracted attention for her role in other controversial decisions made by the board, including the attempted destruction of Life of Washington murals,[12] the attempted renaming of 44 schools,[13] and the refusal to hire a consultant to reopen the schools during the COVID-19 pandemic.[14] Collins is one of three commissioners facing a recall election on February 15, 2022.[15] It will be San Francisco's first ever election to remove a member of the school board.[16]

Early life[]

According to Collins' San Francisco Unified School District biography, she holds a master's degree in education from San Francisco State University.[17] According to biographies at the websites of San Francisco Unified School District and other sources, Collins' father was one of the first African American professors at UCLA.[17][18][non-primary source needed] She has stated that her parents attended public schools and she is a mixed race person.[3] As of January 2022, she was 52 years old.[19]

Activism[]

Collins was an educator for 20 years[3] prior to 2020 and ran the "San Francisco Public School Mom" blog.[1] She is a critic of charter schools[1] and believes that merit-based systems are racist.[20]

In 2016 Collins complained about incidents of bullying and racism at Francisco Middle School attended by her daughters. Subsequently, the contract of Principal Patricia Theel of the school was not renewed.[21] In a tweet from 2017 Collins appeared to claim responsibility for the firing.[22] Theel and two other employees of San Francisco Unified School District have accused Collins of bullying behavior and creating a toxic atmosphere at schools which Collins's daughters attended.[22]

San Francisco Board of Education[]

Main article: San Francisco Board of Education

Collins was elected to the Board of Education in 2018, among a pool of 19 candidates.[23]

In 2019 Collins voted with the rest of the board to destroy the Life of Washington murals in George Washington High School, which had been contentious due to their depiction of slavery and Native Americans. After a public outcry, the board decided in a 4 to 3 vote, with Collins (together with Mark Sanchez and Gabriela Lopez) in the minority, to cover the art work instead. In response to preservationists, Collins stated that “mural is not historic. It is a relic. It is a remnant from a bygone era. You don’t get to tell us to keep them. If you want them, come get them."[12][24]

Work by Collins and others on the Board to rename 44 schools, named after individuals and places associated allegedly with racism or exploitation, has been the focus of controversy as well as legal action.[25][26][27] Collins stated that the intent was not to erase history, but to “create space for new people who deserve to be celebrated”, “Nobody is going to not know who George Washington is. Nobody is going to not know who Lincoln is,” Collins said.[13]

Collins voted with the 5-2 majority in February 2021 to turn the merit-based admissions policy at Lowell High School into a lottery system,[28] calling the former system "racist".[5] Angel Eduardo of Newsweek opined that the erasure of merit-based systems would lead to the erasure of people of color by reducing them to a quota.[29] Critics have also pointed out that Collins's own children attend Ruth Asawa School of the Arts, which is the only remaining merit-based high school in San Francisco.[30]

Collins and other school board members have been criticized by Mayor London Breed and others for failure to reopen schools during the pandemic. In 2020 the district attempted to hire a reopening consultant but was blocked by the board, with Collins comparing the consulting firm to a "crime syndicate".[14] She also stated that hiring the consultant would amount to "perpetuating white supremacy".[31]

Tweets against Asian Americans[]

Prior to her election to the San Francisco Board of Education in 2018,[32] Collins used a racial slur to reference Asian Americans in her tweets on December 4, 2016, referring to them as "house n****r  [sic]",[33] and "the help", after alleging anti-Blackness in the Asian American population at her daughters' school and accusing Asian American teachers and students in the San Francisco Unified School District of perpetuating the model minority myth by assimilating and not engaging in critical race theory dialogue.[34] Over the course of several tweets on December 4, 2016, Collins wrote:

Many Asian [students] and [teachers] I know won't engage in critical race convos unless they see how they're impacted by white supremacy. ... Many Asian Am. believe they benefit from the "model minority" BS. In fact many Asian American [teachers], [students] and [parents] actively promote these myths. They use white supremacist thinking to assimilate and "get ahead". Talk to many [Lowell High School] parents and you will hear praise of Tiger Moms and disparagement of Black/Brown "culture". I even see it in my [Facebook] timeline with former [high school] peers. Their [timelines] are full of White Asian ppl. No recognition Black Lives Matter exists. 2 [weeks] ago, my mixed-race/Black daughter heard boys teasing a Latino about "Trump, Mexicans and the KKK." The boys were Asian-American. She spoke up when none of the other staff did. The after school counselor was Asian. Where are the vocal Asians speaking up against Trump? Don't Asian Americans know they're on his list as well? Do they think they won't be deported? profiled? beaten? Being a house n****r  [sic] is still being a n****r. You're still considered "the help."[34]

On March 19, 2021, members of the recall effort against Collins resurfaced the tweets amidst a surge in violent crimes against Asians.[8]

By March 21, 2021, nearly two dozen elected officials had condemned the tweets and called for her resignation,[35] including Mayor of San Francisco London Breed, 10 out of 11 current San Francisco Board of Supervisors and several former supervisors, California State Assembly members David Chiu and Phil Ting, California State Senator Scott Wiener, and fellow commissioners, Jenny Lam and Faauuga Moliga.[36] This also included several San Francisco political groups.[36] Joe Eskenazi of Mission Local said, "The solidarity among San Francisco's political class in calling for school board vice president Alison Collins to resign is stunning in its damn-near unanimity."[37]

On March 22, 2021, the district's Superintendent Leadership team condemned Collins' "racist and hurtful language."[38]

At the regular Board meeting on March 23, 2021, Collins apologized for the tweets but did not mention the Asian American community in the apology.[39] Collins refused to resign,[40] maintained that the tweets were taken out of context,[34] and did not delete the tweets.[41] On March 25, 2021, Commissioners Jenny Lam and Faauuga Moliga introduced a motion of no confidence against Collins. The board approved the resolution 5-2 (with Collins and Commissioner Gabriela Lopez voting against), relieving Collins of her titles including Vice-President and roles in any committees.[42][43]

In November 2021, Collins expressed regret that her words caused hurt to the Asian American community. Collins maintained that her tweets were not racist and that her words were weaponized by opponents with ulterior motives. Collins said, "If we're going to talk about what I said, we should be looking at who surfaced what I said and what were their motivations in sharing old tweets about during a time when Asian Americans were going through a lot of fear and pain."[44]

Lawsuit against the School Board[]

On March 31, 2021, Collins filed an $87-million lawsuit against the San Francisco Unified School District and the 5 board members who had voted for the motion of no-confidence due to her tweets against Asian Americans. The lawsuit alleged that the vote violated her due process, freedom of speech, and caused distress, humiliation, and losses in income and reputation.[40][45] The lawsuit sought an injunction to reinstate her previous roles within the Board.[40]

On April 4, 2021, her lawyer Charles Bonner, said the lawsuit aimed to end what he called lies about the tweets, noting similarities to words used by Malcolm X about bringing together all of those oppressed by racism, “[s]he was saying, ‘Listen, we all got to coalesce, we’ve got to unify, we’ve got to hold hands and recognize our commonality.’ So she called everyone to action."[46]

Various legal scholars expressed skepticism about the viability of the suit. UC Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky said that California school districts are classified "as agents of the state and thus exempt from damages in civil rights cases."[47] Harvard Law professor Laurence Tribe agreed that the suit is likely to be dismissed, saying that, “Courts have more important things to do than provide a stage for the resolution of essentially interpersonal political feuds, especially when the stakes involve the education of children who obviously cannot fend for themselves.”[47] A similar 2010 lawsuit, Blair vs. Bethel School District, lost at every level including the 9th circuit court of appeals.[45]

On August 16, 2021, a federal judge decided that the lawsuit claims had no merit and dismissed the lawsuit.[48][11][49] Subsequently, Collins dropped the lawsuit,[44] and stated that "I'm choosing to focus on our schools."[50] Defending against the lawsuit cost the school district over $110,000 in legal fees.[51] In November 2021, Collins said she does not regret filing the lawsuit because "it reaffirmed my presence on the board. And it also protected my family."[44]

Recall election[]

Main article: 2022 San Francisco Board of Education recall elections

On February 21, 2021, a campaign committee was formed to recall Collins, and two other commissioners from the Board of Education.[7][52] On September 7, 2021 the campaign submitted 81,200 signatures to remove Collins.[53] On October 18, 2021, city officials announced that at least 51,325 of the signatures had been verified, enough to trigger a recall election which was scheduled for February 15, 2022.[15][54] It will be the first San Francisco recall election since 1983.[54]

Supporters of the recall accuse Collins of negligence, expressing anger that public school remained closed in 2020-2021 while other districts and private schools opened in the Bay Area.[54] The recall supporters accuse Collins of misplaced priorities focusing on school renaming and Lowell admissions as students were struggling with distance learning.[54] The recall supporters cite Collins's tweets about Asian Americans, and the subsequent lawsuit against the school district and her fellow commissioners, as additional reasons to remove her from office.[55]

Local politicians and public officials supporting the recall of Collins include Mayor London Breed,[56] State Senator Scott Wiener,[57] chief public defender and former president of the Board of Supervisors Matt Gonzalez,[58] California State Treasurer Fiona Ma,[59] supervisor Matt Haney[60], supervisor Rafael Mandelman[60], supervisor Hillary Ronan[61], former supervisor David Campos[61], former chair of California Democratic Party John Burton[61], and former Mayor Art Agnos[61]. Local publications San Francisco Chronicle,[62] and San Francisco Examiner[63] have also endorsed the recall.

Collins has called the recall campaign "a move toward mayoral control and less local control … for parents who are immigrants who can vote".[64] She called the recall campaign "politically motivated" and stated that “When I see certain people getting upset, I know I’m doing the right thing" [63] The recall is "clearly an attack on democracies" orchestrated by "billionaires" and conservative think tanks, and “I’m actually really proud of my work on the board,” she has stated.[65][19]

Recall critics call the election a waste of money and time when voters could vote on Collins's re-election nine months later in November 2022, and some oppose recalls in general.[66] Recall oponents include former Assembly Member Tom Ammiano and Supervisors Shamann Walton and Dean Preston[61].

Personal life[]

Collins is married to real estate developer Chris Collins, a principal at Urban Pacific Development, LLC. She is the owner of a consulting company, Falcon Pacific LLC, which receives income from Urban Pacific.[2] The couple live in Russian Hill neighborhood of San Francisco with their two daughters.[30]

In April 2021, the San Francisco Planning Department received an anonymous 103-page complaint against Collins and her husband for illegally merging two apartments in their Russian Hill home without a permit.[2] An inspection by the city found that the complaint was valid and that the couple had also violated several other building permit laws.[2] City records show that in 2018 a contractor had complained about the Collinses “refusal to let [the Department of Building Inspection] inspect the interior of the house.”[30] On September 14, 2021, the San Francisco Department of Building Inspection gave the Collinses 30 days to fix the violations and pay fines.[67]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c "Endorsements: Supervisor races, BART board, Board of Education for November 2018". The San Francisco Examiner. October 7, 2018. Archived from the original on 2020-09-29. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d Li, Roland (2021-04-22). "Alison Collins and her husband illegally merged two S.F. apartments, city says". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2021-04-22.
  3. ^ a b c "Youths Step Up to Question School Board Candidates". San Francisco Public Press. October 3, 2018. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  4. ^ Mojadad, Ida (January 8, 2019). "New School Board Member (Finally) Lands Teaching Job in Hayward". SF Weekly. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "San Francisco school board's latest crisis: Racist tweets". Associated Press. March 24, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. ^ Fuller, Thomas; Taylor, Kate (March 29, 2021). "In San Francisco, Turmoil Over Reopening Schools Turns a City Against Itself". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  7. ^ a b Tucker, Jill (February 19, 2021). "While S.F. school officials tout sunny reopening picture, critics ponder board recall". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  8. ^ a b Tucker, Jill (March 20, 2021). "San Francisco school board member criticized for racist tweets in 2016 aimed at Asian Americans". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
  9. ^ Ting, Eric (March 19, 2021). "SF school board member used slur in tweets about Asian Americans". SFGATE. Retrieved March 21, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ Mojadad, Ida (March 25, 2021). "School board strips Alison Collins of titles, committees in vote of no confidence". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "California judge tosses school board member's $87M lawsuit". Associated Press. 2021-08-17. Retrieved 2021-08-18.
  12. ^ a b Tucker, Jill (2021-07-27). "S.F. school mural controversy: Judge rules against district move to cover historic Washington High artwork". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2021-07-31.
  13. ^ a b "San Francisco school renaming effort stalls after colliding with another battle: School reopening". NBC News. Retrieved 2021-05-09.
  14. ^ a b Tucker, Jill (2021-04-29). "S.F. schools seek reopening consultant a year after the board shot down the idea". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2021-05-09.
  15. ^ a b Mazorati, Guy (2021-10-18). "'It's a Question of Competence': San Francisco to Hold Recall Election of 3 School Board Members". KQED. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
  16. ^ "Analysis | The Trailer: San Francisco's school board recalls are tearing Democrats apart". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
  17. ^ a b "Board Vice President Alison M. Collins". www.sfusd.edu. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  18. ^ "Bio". Alison Collins. November 14, 2017. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  19. ^ a b Tucker, Jill (2022-01-29). "S.F. school board recall: Alison Collins, Gabriela López and Faauuga Moliga answer questions about their records". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-01-29.
  20. ^ "San Francisco School Board Commissioner calls merit-based education "racist," sparking debate". Newsweek. February 4, 2021. Retrieved April 12, 2021.
  21. ^ Melendez, Lyanne; Larsen, Kate (March 24, 2021). "SFUSD Board Vice President Alison Collins apologizes for offensive tweets aimed at Asian Americans". ABC7 San Francisco. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  22. ^ a b Knight, Heather (2021-05-08). "Alison Collins wants $87 million for damage to her career. These SFUSD employees say she destroyed theirs". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2021-05-09.
  23. ^ Tucker, Jill (November 7, 2018). "SF school board election: Collins, Lopez and Moliga win seats". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
  24. ^ Brinklow, Adam (2019-08-14). "SF school board votes to save Depression-era murals". Curbed SF. Retrieved 2021-07-31.
  25. ^ Scott, Paul (February 19, 2021). "School Board should heed its own lessons when it comes to renaming schools". The San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  26. ^ Hwang, Kellie; Tucker, Jill (February 22, 2021). "S.F. school board pauses renaming process for 44 schools after coming under fire". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  27. ^ Kesslen, Ben (February 23, 2021). "San Francisco school renaming effort stalls after colliding with another battle: School reopening". NBC News. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  28. ^ Tucker, Jill (February 11, 2021). "S.F. school board strips Lowell High of its merit-based admissions system". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  29. ^ Eduardo, Angel (March 10, 2021). "Why calling merit racist erases people of color | Opinion". Newsweek. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  30. ^ a b c Dyer Reynolds, Susan (May 2021). "Virtue signaling on Hypocrite Hill". Marina Times. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  31. ^ "What San Francisco Unified Board Meetings Reveal About School Reopening". KALW. 2021-04-09. Retrieved 2021-07-08.
  32. ^ Daly, Clara-Sophia; Hom, Annika (April 1, 2021). "Embattled school board member Alison Collins sues district, five colleagues— seeks $87M". Mission Local. Archived from the original on 2021-04-01. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  33. ^ Ting, Eric (March 19, 2021). "SF school board member used slur in tweets about Asian Americans". SFGATE. Retrieved April 12, 2021.
  34. ^ a b c Brooks, Eric; Anderson, Sarah (March 19, 2021). "San Francisco school board member's past tweets targeting Asian Americans surface". KCBS (AM). Retrieved March 20, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  35. ^ Dowd, Katie; Ting, Eric (March 21, 2021). "Dozens of officials, including mayor, ask SF school board VP Alison Collins to step down". SFGate. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  36. ^ a b Tucker, Jill (March 21, 2021). "Mayor Breed calls for S.F. school board member to resign over racist tweets directed at Asian Americans". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 28, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  37. ^ Eskenazi, Joe (March 23, 2021). "The strange and terrible saga of Alison Collins and her ill-fated Tweets". Mission Local (missionlocal.org). Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  38. ^ Quintana, Sergio (21 March 2021). "Calls Increase for SF School Board Member to Resign Over Controversial Tweets". NBC Bay Area. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  39. ^ Melendez, Lyanne; Larsen, Kate (March 24, 2021). "SFUSD Board Vice President Alison Collins apologizes for offensive tweets aimed at Asian Americans". KGO TV ABC 7 News. Retrieved April 12, 2021. Vice president of the board, Alison Collins, apologized for her tweets. "I'd like to re-emphasize my sincere and heartfelt apologies." Collins did not mention the Asian American community in her one-minute statement to the board and a thousand listening parents and students.
  40. ^ a b c Tucker, Jill; Egelko, Bob (March 31, 2021). "SF school board member Alison Collins sues district, colleagues over response to her tweets". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  41. ^ "San Francisco Board of Education Votes to Remove Allison Collins As VP Over Racist Tweets". KPIX. San Francisco: CBS. March 25, 2021. Retrieved March 28, 2021. As of Saturday evening, Collins had not deleted the posts.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  42. ^ "SF Board of Education Passes No Confidence Resolution" (Press Release). SFUSD. San Francisco. March 25, 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-03-28. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  43. ^ Tucker, Jill (March 26, 2021). "S.F. school board votes no confidence in commissioner over racist 2016 tweets". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  44. ^ a b c Rancaño, Vanessa (2021-11-19). "SF School Board Member Alison Collins Defends Herself Against Recall Effort". KQED. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
  45. ^ a b Eskenazi, Joe (April 2, 2021). "Alison Collins' strange and terrible $87M lawsuit". Mission Local (missionlocal.org). Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  46. ^ Tucker, Tucker (April 4, 2021). "Alison Collins' lawsuit comes amid S.F. school district crisis. The real losers could be the students". SF Chronicle.
  47. ^ a b Egelko, Bob (April 2, 2021). "S.F. school board member Alison Collins' lawsuit draws skepticism from legal experts". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  48. ^ Tucker, Jill (2021-08-16). "Alison Collins' $87 million lawsuit against S.F. school board members, district tossed by judge". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2021-08-18.
  49. ^ "Judge: Black School Board Member Demoted for Anti-Asian Tweets Did Not Suffer First Amendment Violation; Claims Barred by Qualified Immunity". Law & Crime. 2021-08-17. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
  50. ^ Mojadad, Ida (2021-09-20). "Alison Collins speaks: Embattled SF school board member confronts the recall effort". The San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
  51. ^ Tucker, Jill (2021-09-07). "Alison Collins drops $87 million lawsuit against S.F. school district on day recall backers submit signatures". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
  52. ^ Mojadad, Ida (February 22, 2021). "Parents launch recall effort against school board members". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  53. ^ Tucker, Jill (2021-09-07). "Alison Collins drops $87 million lawsuit against S.F. school district on day recall backers submit signatures". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-01-29.
  54. ^ a b c d Tucker, Jill (2021-10-18). "S.F. voters to decide fate of 3 school board members in first city recall election in nearly 40 years". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
  55. ^ Marinucci, Carla; Colliver, Victoria. "Covid anger drives recall election targeting 3 San Francisco school leaders". Politico. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
  56. ^ Tucker, Jill (2021-11-09). "Mayor Breed backs recall of three San Francisco school board members: 'Our kids must come first'". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-01-30.
  57. ^ Ting, Eric (2021-11-04). "SF Board of Education recall receives endorsement from Scott Wiener". SFGATE. Retrieved 2022-01-30.
  58. ^ Knight, Heather (2022-01-29). "He's a public defender and legendary S.F. progressive. Here's why he backs the school board recall". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-01-30.
  59. ^ Staff, Sebastian Cahill | Senior (2022-01-28). "CA swept by large wave of 'unprecedented' recalls in 2021". The Daily Californian. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  60. ^ a b Sumida, Nami (2022-01-17). "Who is supporting the S.F. Board of Education recall? Here's what the data shows". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-02-08.
  61. ^ a b c d e Knight, Heather (2022-01-29). "He's a public defender and legendary S.F. progressive. Here's why he backs the school board recall". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-02-08.
  62. ^ "Endorsement: Competence matters, even for progressives. Vote yes to recall López, Collins and Moliga". San Francisco Chronicle. 2022-01-23. Retrieved 2022-01-30.
  63. ^ a b Barba, Michael (2021-08-20). "SF school board members break silence as recalls ramp up". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
  64. ^ Mojadad, Ida (2021-09-20). "Alison Collins speaks: Embattled SF school board member confronts the recall effort". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
  65. ^ "Endorsement: San Francisco's school board is a national laughingstock. Yes on the recall". The San Francisco Examiner. 2022-01-28. Retrieved 2022-01-29.
  66. ^ Tucker, Jill (2021-09-27). "San Francisco could foot the bill for school board recall to help cash-strapped district". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
  67. ^ Li, Roland (September 14, 2021). "S.F. gives 30-day deadline in Alison and Chris Collins' illegal apartment merger case". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 25, 2021.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""