Santa Rosa City Schools board member dons raccoon mask and sign in response to racial attacks

It was an act of political theater, the kind that rarely — if ever — happens at a Santa Rosa school board meeting.

During the time allotted for trustee reports at last Wednesday’s meeting, Ed Sheffield, trustee of Area 5, suddenly pulled out a raccoon mask and draped it over his face. Then he held up a handwritten sign — made by his kids with red markers — that said “Talk to the Racoon.”

Sheffield, the only Black person on the seven-member school board, said it was his way of taking back the power in response to a racial slur aimed at him during a barrage of personal attacks in recent board meetings.

He said he also wanted to show his kids that you have to stand up to bullies sometimes.

"If you can’t laugh, what are you gonna do? Give them more strength?“ Sheffield said.

The slur, which was recorded on video, came from a longtime critic with a history of personal attacks at public meetings across Sonoma County, at least one of which has resulted in a restraining order against him.

National backlash

Across the United States, school board members and other public officials have been subjected to personal attacks, death threats and online hostility, particularly over culture war issues in recent years.

A 2021 survey of local officials by The National League of Cities found 85% said they’d observed “an increase in attacks on public officials,” with 81% who said they’d experienced it themselves.

For the Santa Rosa City Schools board, members began experiencing an uptick in personal attacks by a small group of people who were frustrated with the board’s COVID-19 response and school mask mandates, Sheffield said.

After the on-campus death of a Montgomery High School student on March 1, critics have blamed the board for failing to take action to stem an increase in school violence and have called for increased discipline and improved safety protocols.

Parents have especially expressed their frustration over their restorative justice efforts and the 2020 decision to end the school resource officer program.

Some frustrated civilians have taken it to a personal level, using name-calling against school board members.

In an interview earlier this month, Superintendent Anna Trunnell said school officials do get a lot of public attention and criticism, especially as the largest district in the county in terms of enrollment.

“I could definitely live without the hate mail,” she said. “But I really admire this board’s strength when we've heard some very hurtful things.”

In response to Sheffield’s recent board meeting statement, Trunnell said that it “demonstrate(s) his ability to respond in a way that allows him to walk in his truth,” she said. “We do not tolerate hate speech, even as public servants.”

Targeted on May 10

Sheffield is the longest-serving member of the school board and the parent of two children in Santa Rosa schools. As a biracial man raised by his African American father and white mother, he’s talked openly about racism and prejudice, speaking on his personal experiences of having to explain the issues to his kids.

Sheffield became the target of a racial slur aimed at him during a May 10 board meeting.

During public comment, Shelby Pryor, a regular attendee and commentator at Santa Rosa City Schools board meetings, called him a slur used to denigrate a Black person. Pryor, like Sheffield, is half Black and half white.

In an interview with The Press Democrat, Pryor doubled down on his comments and called Sheffield the same slur, along with others.

“We as Black people are frustrated with our Black leadership who continue to do what the white oppressive leadership has been doing to us forever,” he said. “So I called Ed Sheffield out of his name.”

He continued to call Sheffield “a traitor to his race.”

He said his frustration stems from a litany of district decisions. His list included a Tweet by Sheffield years ago in which he allegedly used a racial slur; the board’s COVID-19 policy and vaccination requirements; recent school violence and a long feud between his fiance, Adina Flores, and the district.

Pryor has a history of problematic comments at public meetings.

In June 2022, Sonoma County won a long-term extension of a workplace restraining order against Pryor after he made a “credible threat” against Supervisor James Gore.

Pryor had also used a vulgar, misogynist term against Gore’s wife and challenged their 7-year-old son to a fight, though he later said he did not know the child’s age when he made the statement.

Pryor no longer lives in Sonoma County, he confirmed. But that doesn’t matter to him. “I have friends and family in the district who are under the rule of these people who are tyrannical,” he said.

A self-proclaimed activist, “I’m actively working in every community I’m in” he said. That includes Livermore, Sonoma, Petaluma, Vallejo and San Ramon.

Reaction to slur

After Pryor’s May 10 slur, trustee Alegria De La Cruz cut him off and said sternly “We do not tolerate hate speech in this district. That is a racial slur, Mr. Pryor, and that kind of language needs to stop.”

“Please cut his microphone,” she said in an exasperated tone. “That word is not appropriate to use against any person, especially a Black man. No.”

Officials cut his mic because his comment violated the board’s civility policy, said Board President Stephanie Manieri.

Under Senate Bill 100, which went into effect Jan. 1, 2023, board presidents have the right to remove individuals after they engage in “continued, willful disruptive behavior after a request to stop.”

Manieri said that although Pryor violated board and state policy, he has not been removed from any meetings.

The incident quickly reverberated.

Santa Rosa City Council Member and former mayor Chris Rogers took to Facebook the next day.

“Sending love to my guy Ed Sheffield,” he wrote. “At last night's school board meeting, he was subject to blatantly racist comments … It's completely unacceptable and needs to be called out.”

He added that Sheffield has served as a mentor to many, and he commended De La Cruz for immediately taking action.

Sheffield was pretty much silent about the incident for two weeks.

But on the May 24 board meeting, Sheffield used his trustee report time to address the incident.

Being under a public verbal attack “is not uncommon,” he told his colleagues and the audience. It’s something to be expected when you run for an elected position.

“But this particular attack crossed the line,” he said.

Using public comment to boost personal ideologies, propaganda and race shaming “has been able to go on for far too long,” he said. Public comment is a time for people to bring attention to their concerns and a time for board members to conduct business, he said.

“That said, call me names, try to hurt my feelings and (spout) whatever conspiracy theories that you subscribe to, and unless you cross the line, and we’ll have to take the mic when you do, you’re free to talk until you’re blue in the face, but that doesn’t mean that I’m listening,” Sheffield said.

At that point he put on the raccoon mask and pulled out his sign.

Manieri, the board president, could be seen wiping away tears after he spoke.

“What moved me was his courage to reclaim the situation and share his truth about being a public servant,” she said in an emailed comment to The Press Democrat. “We've been facing personal attacks on our Board for a while, but Director Sheffield has repeatedly been under attack for his race.”

Pryor said he found Sheffield’s actions “highly offensive and ridiculous.”

"It only further makes me want to sink my feet in the sand and go even harder and get these people removed so we can replace them with the people who have the best interests of our children in the district,“ he said.

Several board members did not respond to requests for comment, and De La Cruz and board member Ever Flores declined to comment on Sheffield’s response.

“However, I do believe that it is important for us as a board to address and condemn any form of hateful speech or behavior during our meetings,” Flores said.

“There is no room for hatred, racism, homophobia, and bigotry during school board meetings,” he added. “To serve every child in Santa Rosa schools, it is essential that we maintain a safe and respectful environment — whether it’s the board room or classroom, an environment without fear of being attacked or discriminated against.”

Sheffield is clear: he does not think that race was at the root of the problem, though “it’s definitely intertwined.”

He said he’s had to explain to his kids why adults from out of the area would choose to bully public servants in-person and online just because they're public servants.

“They’re trolls,” he said. “And they’re just looking for more to troll.”

You can reach Staff Writer Alana Minkler at 707-526-8531 or alana.minkler@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @alana_minkler.