We are living in strange times.
A gay father was denied a spot on the San Francisco School Board’s Parent Advisory Council due to his race during a Feb. 9 meeting.
Seth Brenzel was unanimously endorsed by the sitting members of the Parent Advisory Council for one of the council’s four open seats. The Advisory Council specifically noted that it was lacking representation from “LGBTQ+ families, and those with experience with foster youth.”
Brenzel and his husband are adoptive fathers.
Before the school board began even considering Brenzel’s appointment, however, Commissioner Matt Alexander expressed concern about “creating [a] space that over-represent[s] white parents.”
“This is public shaming. It’s bullying behavior by people of power. Leaders of our community. Seth is one of the most caring people I know,” a community member in support of Brenzel said, according to the event’s official transcript.
Another supporter noted that “Seth would be the only male on the pact. He would be the only LGBTQ member. He has a mixed-race child.”
School Board Vice President Alison Collins was offended by the idea that Brenzel could advocate for mixed-race students.
“As a mixed-race person myself, I find it offensive when folks say that somebody is a parent of somebody who is a person of color as like a signifier that they’re qualified to represent that community,” she said.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 17: A sign is posted outside of Abraham Lincoln High School on December 17, 2020 in San Francisco, California. A San Francisco school names advisory committee is recommending to remove Abraham Lincoln’s name from San Francisco's Abraham Lincoln High School for the 16th President's past treatment of Native Americans. The committee is recommending the renaming of 44 schools named after historical figures that they find inappropriate. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)