Johannesburg independent school St Stithians is not having a good year. First it had to wield criticism from some irate students, old boys and parents over the admission of its first trans learner to the Girls College, and now an infuriated father is suing because his daughter – in Matric in 2020 – was accused of âracism, racist conduct or other offensive behaviourâ and with âDissemination of a WhatsApp communication with an (sic) alleged racist contentâ. She was denied legal representation during the investigative, disciplinary and appeal processes, her father claims, and on 5 October that year, Advocate Ngwako Maenetje, SC, appointed by the school, ruled against St Stithians, Dr James, Ms Horwitz and Mrs Langa-Royds, and dismissed both the finding of guilt and the sanctions imposed on the pupil. Who would be a pupil, parent or staff member at school in South Africa at the moment? – Sandra Laurence
Why I am suing St Stithians over false allegations of racism
By Martin Humphries*
There have been numerous articles and posts in recent times about identity politics, some of them about accusations of racism at schools and colleges in South Africa.
Stories are being told about unfortunate cases at various institutions, including St Johnâs College in Johannesburg, Michaelhouse in KwaZulu-Natal, St Maryâs DSG in Pretoria, Herschel Girls School in Cape Town, and my daughterâs former college in Sandton, St Stithians.
There appears to be a common thread: a handful of activists and their yay-sayers who are hell bent on seeking and amplifying division and cancellation*. These activists are allowed to flourish and are perhaps even encouraged by those in charge. This is not only destructive for any innocent victims, but it is also not what the institutions themselves, or the country, need right now.
It is also very expensive. Yet it seems these schools have lots of spare cash for consultants and lawyers in helping to drive the activistsâ agenda and narrative.
I believe there are many innocent victims out there, including students, parents, and teachers, who want to tell their stories but who are too scared to do so for fear of further reprisal. Or perhaps itâs because it takes time and energy to fight back. Either way, itâs not going to help our children if parents sit back while standards of leadership and governance are allowed to decline.
I am a father whose daughter was in Grade 12 at St Stithians College in 2020. I am now suing St Stithians and three of its officials, and, if I succeed, itâs going to cost college management a lot of time and money.
Summons has been issued in the Randburg Regional Court against St Stithians College, Dr Sally James (Head of Girlsâ College), Ms Leanne Horwitz (Head of Diversity and Transformation, Girlsâ College) and Mrs Ntombi Langa-Royds (former Deputy Chair, now Chair of Council).
Background
What follows is a summary of the case and public record.
For broad context, St Stithians and its officials had a legal duty not to infringe or impair my daughterâs right to a basic education, and to act in her best interests. However, on 31 May 2020, Dr James made false, unfounded, and defamatory allegations against my daughter.
On 1 June, Ms Horwitz was appointed as âChief Investigatorâ. Interviews and discussions were held with my daughter, while I was prohibited from attending.
On 5 June my daughter was issued with a notice to attend a disciplinary hearing on 12 June. She was charged with âRacism, racist conduct or other offensive behaviourâ and with âDissemination of a WhatsApp communication with an (sic) alleged racist contentâ.
On 12 June my daughter pleaded not guilty to all charges at the disciplinary hearing chaired by Mrs Langa-Royds, who proceeded to find my daughter guilty on both charges and recommended the following sanctions:
- A written warning valid for 6 months with expulsion for any offences of a similar nature; and
- A âRestoration and Reflection Taskâ of purchasing and reading âWaking up White: and finding myself in a story of raceâ by Debby Irving, followed by a two-page essay.
My daughter maintained her innocence throughout and appealed against the findings and sanctions.
Advocate Ngwako Hamilton Maenetje SC was appointed by St Stithians to chair the appeal process. Despite the appeal having been noted, St Stithians and Dr James proceeded to implement the sanctions.
On 5 October 2020 Adv. Maenetje SC ruled against St Stithians, Dr James, Ms Horwitz and Mrs Langa-Royds, and dismissed both the finding of guilt and the sanctions imposed upon my daughter.
Intentional conduct
St Stithians, Dr James, Ms Horwitz and Mrs Langa-Royds intentionally and deliberately failed to act in my daughterâs best interests; they failed to properly investigate the veracity and origin of the false allegations and acted with undue haste in their quest to prosecute her.
It appears that this was due to pressure from certain groups within and without the St Stithians community (which they referred to as the âgreater school communityâ) and in the context of the âBlack Lives Matter Movementâ. Dr James, in her capacity of Head of the Girlsâ College, decided to make an example of my daughter and to punish her in an attempt to quell the pressure from mainly black students and negative publicity on social media targeting several white students and teachers.
Ms Horwitz, as Chief Investigator for St Stithians, persisted with the prosecution of my daughter without having conducted a reasonable and proper investigation and without having investigated the origin of the allegations.
Mrs Langa-Royds, chair of the disciplinary hearing, found my daughter guilty on all charges, despite finding that she could not determine whether my daughter disseminated the alleged WhatsApp communication with the alleged racist content. Mrs Langa-Royds nonetheless found her guilty of racism, racist conduct or other offensive behaviour.
Negligence
St Stithians management failed to consider the damage and devastating consequences for my daughter of being found guilty of serious charges of racism.
St Stithians management failed further in their duties to my daughter when they opposed the appeal brought by her, at which they introduced a large volume of documents, most of which had not been introduced at the initial disciplinary hearing and were therefore irrelevant to the appeal process.
My daughter was denied legal representation during the investigative, disciplinary and appeal processes and was represented where possible by me, her father.
Claim
I had to prepare to be able to assist my daughter properly and spent many hours preparing for defending her against the conduct of St Stithians and its officials.
I set out the time I had had to spend, as well as the relevant costs attendant thereon, in an invoice to St Stithians.
It is for payment of this invoice that I am now suing St Stithians and its relevant managers. St Stithians in turn is suing me for outstanding fees for the year in question; I am defending this claim strenuously. If I win both matters, it will likely cost St Stithians over R500 000.
The collegeâs management may have felt under pressure to be seen to be dealing with several allegations of racism. However, they were obliged to thoroughly investigate any allegations being made. In the current climate, being falsely accused and found guilty of racism can destroy a childâs schooling and prospects.
This may be hard on management, but they are obliged to manage these fraught scenarios fairly and professionally.
*cancellation is the ostracism of someone from media, social media or in person, for doing or saying something that is contrary to the view held by those promoting the cancellation.
- Martin Humphries is an engineer, economist, entrepreneur, and father of two.
- The views of the writer are not necessarily the views of the Daily Friend or the IRR.
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