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Racism has no place in Paso Robles politics

September 14, 2024

Paso Robles Joint Unified School District Board Trustee Laurene McCoy

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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I couldn’t agree more with the author of this opinion piece. I listened to the KPRL radio interview Karen Velie conducted with these two candidates. Laurene McCoy was thoughtful, compelling, confident and well spoken, while Tim Gearheart came across as unpolished, opinionated and he voiced several immature and snarky responses. Paso Robles voters will be well served by retaining Laurene McCoy on the school board and in keeping the 77-year-old goofy racist out to pasture where he belongs.


4

Actions, not words are what count. A candidate’s record of past performance is what counts. An anti-Christian bigot is also highly likely to be an anti-Semite as well.


4

And most Governments who promote nationalism, are a disgrace. As if it isn’t one planet. There isn’t a “master race”.


-7

But it’s Paso. And this kind of stuff only happens in Paso.

Not anywhere else in the county schools.

Think about what the guy says “…racist neighbors…”. in Paso.

Patriotic, USA loving Paso. But loving only if you are like one of them.


-10

This is awful behavior. But slo did just have a basketball coach investigated for inappropriate behavior towards minors that the school tried to cover up. There’s issues throughout the entire county which is why electing people with morals and ethics is more important than the party they belong to.


12

Agree, luckily, a minority. The best people here don’t give 2 cents about this and work together and ignore the noise. It’s noise, to defen people from wider issues.


-3

Totally agree a minority. But why does a majority of these school related things keep happening in Paso?

When are parents here going to pump the brakes and let their kids be students?

A lot of parents and leaders are setting bad examples with their extreme ideologies.

Let the kids learn by doing-by dealing with adversity.


3

After all these years, you say something that makes perfect sense for everyone. Thank you!


-5

Racism is a two lane street… I’ve had friends of all colors and religions and some of the most racist people I’ve met are not white… we always want to stick this charge on one side and one side only… and that is in itself racist…. the way to stop racism is to stop being racist… all of us…


4