Ukiah teacher branded racist for using word 'niggardly' sued officials for damaging his reputation

Calling someone a racist for using the oft-misunderstood word "niggardly" does not constitute defamation, a Mendocino County Superior Court judge has ruled.

The decision concludes a small claims lawsuit filed against Mendocino County school officials by former history teacher Dennis Boaz, who claimed that district officials harmed him when they accused him of being a racist, an allegation that he said contributed to his retirement.

The dispute began in 2009 when Boaz, as lead negotiator for the teacher's union, used the word "niggardly" in a letter to describe labor negotiations with the Ukiah Unified School District.

"The tenor of the negotiation tactics have become increasingly negative and niggardly," Boaz wrote to members updating them on salary talks.

Niggardly means stingy or miserly and most likely stems from the Old Norse verb nigla, "to fuss about small matters," and is related to "niggling," meaning petty or unimportant.

But it has a long history of mistaken identity, and the superintendents of Mendocino County's schools said Boaz knew that. They said his use of it could be construed as a slight against Ukiah Unified School District Superintendent Lois Nash, who is black.

Boaz said there was no such intention, and said school officials used his choice of language as a way to stymie negotiations.

The district's assistant superintendent, Bryan Barrett, wrote a letter accusing Boaz of being racist. It was followed by a second letter signed by the other county school districts' superintendents.

That brought the suit by Boaz who claimed his reputation was damaged by the allegation and contributed to his decision to retire from teaching.

In his ruling this week, Judge Leonard La Casse wrote that the word "racist" constitutes opinion and has lost its edge. He said the word has been watered down by overuse and has become common coin in political discourse.

Barrett and the Ukiah Unified School District were defendants in the lawsuit. A second case involving others who signed the letter was expected to be heard this fall. But Boaz said there is little point in proceeding because La Casse also would hear that case.

Boaz said he was disappointed by the ruling and used familiar language to describe his feelings Thursday:

"I think the judge's perspective on actionable libel from a progressive perspective is niggardly," Boaz said.

School officials could not be reached for comment.

While he ruled in favor of the Ukiah district, La Casse apparently was not amused with its letter attacking Boaz.

"The court also is distressed that there appears to be a need for adult supervision at the district offices," he wrote.