SURVEY RESULTS: Why was the NAACP voter registration team kicked out of Chester High School?

City Politics: 61%

City Politics & School Protocol: 20%

School Protocol: 17%

Just as I completed the survey asking what significant activities the Chester NAACP conducts besides their annual banquet, I learn from the Daily Times that they conduct voter registration at the high school. 

(It’s not too late for you to share other good things the NAACP does in Chester. There have been zero responses so far -- Click HERE).

According to the Delcotimes.com article, Chester Upland, NAACP wrangle over protocol, I’ll try to divide the statements that support City Politics and support School Protocol as the reasons why the NAACP was kicked out of Chester High.

School Protocol

The school board president says...

• Outside organizations must gain permission from district administrators before hosting events on school premises.
• Unfortunately, no one from the NAACP asked the leadership of Chester Upland for permission to enter one of our schools for voter registration purposes. Had they notified us of their desire to conduct such an event, we would have tried our best to accommodate them.
• We cannot run a district where organizations, no matter how well-intentioned they may be, have unrestricted access to our schools throughout the course of the school day. 
• As a professional organization, I am sure the NAACP can understand the significance of protocol and proper procedure, especially where schoolchildren are involved. We look forward to having the opportunity to honor this type of request from the NAACP in the future.

School district spokesperson says...

• Any organization wishing to host an event should complete a “request to partner” form, available at each of the district’s schools and administration office
• The decision to ask the NAACP to leave had nothing to do with politics and everything to do with protocol. The district would welcome the NAACP in the future, if it followed that protocol.
• You can imagine it would be a frenzy if it were not this way. “Why wouldn’t organizations or individuals just come in and out of the school facilities at their leisure? It doesn’t work that way in any district.

Politics

• The school districts elected board is comprised of nine members, all Republicans. Five of those terms expire at the year’s conclusion.
• The NAACP is a nonpartisan organization. However, some of its high-ranking members are affiliated with the Chester Democratic Committee,
• “Mayor Wendell N. Butler Jr., chairman of the Chester Republican Committee, said he had not heard of the situation and couldn’t comment.
• Butler added that Chester is a third- class city and that the school district is a separate entity from the city. He also praised the role the NAACP plays in the community.

Chester  NAACP

The NAACP says...

• They have conducted voter registration at the High School for more than 20 years.
• NAACP has held about two such sessions each year.
• They have never run into problems, noting the organization has also held voter education classes.
• The NAACP set up its voter registration session at the high school by first contacting the principal.

My conclusions

I, too, am sure that the NAACP can understand the significance of protocol and proper procedure. That’s what they do. 

If they have been permitted to come into the schools for 20 years with the okay from the principal, than they probably thought that was the proper procedure.

Now that everyone knows there is a more formal procedure that must first be approved by the school board, was this the right time to spring it on the NAACP? 

Couldn’t the board have simply told the NAACP that next year we need you to fill out our ‘request to partner’ form. Doesn’t the board also put the principal in a compromising position for allowing the event to go on without proper permission from the board?

If the school district is so supportive of the NAACP, why couldn’t they have an emergency meeting, conference call, or email blast to expedite signing the form to get board approval and quell all the drama of kicking them out of the school?

Based on this delcotimes.com article, it’s hard to support that school protocol was the reason the NAACP was kicked out.

Politically, it’s a shame the mayor didn’t know anything about this situation before the Daily Times reporter brought it to his attention. However, I don’t see that as a reason why he couldn’t comment. 

But, whenever things get sticky in the school district, the city takes a laissez-faire position and stands behind the fact that Chester city government is totally separate from the Chester school district, and therefore, they have nothing to do with any of that mess up there.

I don’t understand how the Democrat - Republican thing becomes a factor in voter registration but the article implies that based on the political makeup of the NAACP vs the school board, politics is a factor.

I hope the NAACP went right to the school board and filled out that form immediately. No telling how long it will take to get approval.