Schools Chancellor David Banks’ ousting of Maud Maron from Manhattan Community Education Council 2 still reeks a week later.
His pretext is absurd: Her supposed wrongdoing was making “derogatory or offensive comments” about a public-school student.
Huh? She answered a Post reporter’s question about an anonymous Stuyvesant (HS) Spectator column that accused Israel of genocide while whitewashing Hamas’ Oct. 7 atrocities.
“The byline should read coward instead of anonymous. If you are going to repeat revolting Hamas propaganda and transcribe your ignorance and Jew hatred, put your name to it,” she told The Post in her capacity as a parent serving on the School Leadership Team.
Sorry: Criticizing an (odious) opinion piece isn’t derogatory, and obviously a slam of Mr. or Ms. Anonymous can’t be a personal attack — that would require a name.
At most, this might justify a reprimand.
No, ousting Maron was plainly a political two-fer.
First, it let Banks “balance” his ouster of CEC 14 President Tajh Sutton — except that she actually violated a slew of state laws.
As Banks wrote Sutton: “It appears that the Council under your leadership and direction is only selectively representing the district’s parent community, blocking attendance and participation at its meetings on questionable grounds, and not responding to or addressing parent concerns.”
Sutton had the CEC actively support (with, per Banks, “dissemination of materials containing harassing and discriminatory content”) a student walkout to protest Israel’s war on Hamas.
Maron, again, just commented on an opinion piece — but now Banks can tell Sutton’s antisemitic fans that he’s also tough on anti-antisemites.
Plus, he’s appeased the trans-rights advocates who’d been pressing him for months to toss Maron because she led CEC 2 to pass a resolution calling for a review of the city’s policy that lets trans kids play sports in accordance with their preferred gender.
Banks figures he solved two political problems by ousting Maron.
Sadly, he also set a terrible example for the city’s schoolchildren, proving that bullying gets you your way even with the chief of the city’s schools.