Racism has no place in Paso Robles politics
September 14, 2024
OPINION by DORIAN BAKER
I was shocked and disheartened to learn of Tim Gearhart’s recent comments made to Paso Robles Joint Unified School District board candidate Laurene McCoy moments before their joint radio interview on KPRL.
He openly admitted that the reason he’s running against Laurene for the district’s Board of Trustees is because some of his racist neighbors asked him to. They didn’t like Laurene, who is a black woman, and persuaded him to run, in order to remove her from the board.
Let’s be clear: if you run for office because racists encouraged you to, based on their racist attitudes, then you’ve chosen to ally with racism. That makes you complicit, and yes, that makes you a racist.
This is not the first time Gearhart’s judgment has been in question. While he previously served on the school district board, his leadership was nothing short of disastrous.
During his tenure, the district’s financial situation spiraled out of control under Superintendent Chris Williams. Gearhart gave Williams unwavering support, never once delivering a negative evaluation, despite the clear and growing financial mismanagement under his leadership, to the point that the county had to come in and take over the district’s finances.
His failure to hold the superintendent accountable played a significant role in the district’s financial collapse.
His leadership—or lack thereof—was so poor that it resulted in a 2022 Grand Jury investigation and subsequent report, Paso Robles Public Schools: “A Cautionary Tale.” The report pointed out the dysfunctional governance, failure of fiscal oversight, failure of leadership, and general collapse of trust in district leadership during Gearhart’s tenure.
What’s even more concerning is Gearhart’s openly anti-Christian sentiment. He has stated that pastors should not be allowed to serve on the board, a direct attack on Laurene McCoy, who is not only a dedicated trustee but also a Christian pastor.
Such bigotry has no place in our community.
There is no room for Tim Gearhart’s racist, anti-Christian bigotry in Paso Robles, and certainly not on the district school board. His own admission of being pushed into this race for racist reasons, along with his clear record of failed leadership, demonstrates a complete lack of judgment.
Tim Gearhart should immediately withdraw from the race for the good of our students, our district, and our community.
Dorian Baker is a current member of the Paso Robles Joint Unified School District Board of Trustees.
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