Newly Appointed Board Member Who Reportedly Bragged About Marching To The Capitol On Jan. 6th Is Asked To Step Down By School Board

Buh-bye!


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One recently appointed member of a Louisiana school board just found their new position to be extremely short-lived after the board requested the member’s resignation following an examination of the individual’s social media posts left them certain that he would be ineffective” in his role and spurred them to request that he resign — thanks in large part to the person’s involvement in the infamous January 6th “Stop the Steal” rally that ultimately led to the violent Capitol riot.

The Jefferson Parish School Board appointed one Rafael Rafidi on Wednesday of this week. However, they quickly changed their minds upon finding social media posts from Rafidi just days after his appointment to the role that board members say showed him in “provocative positions,” according to a new report from Business Insider. 

A recent analysis of Rafidi’s social media accounts, conducted by The Daily Beastfound that the businessman was a proud participant of the Washington D.C. “Stop the Steal” Trump rally on January 6th, 2021, the day of the fateful, violent Capitol building siege by the now-ex-President’s rabid supporters. Rafidi ultimately referred to lawmakers who have rightfully blamed former President Trump for the violent insurrection as “traitors.”

It’s widely recognized that Donald Trump’s dramatic “Stop the Steal” rally just outside the Capitol building on the morning of January 6th is what ignited his band of supporters and led to the siege of the Capitol building, with lawmakers and the Vice President inside, leaving 5 individuals, including a police officer, dead.

It was Trump’s own blatant calls on his people to protest the results of the election that Joe Biden fairly and rightfully won that ultimately emboldened and spurred the crowd that day.

In screenshots captured by NOLA.com, Rafidi writes, “Go fuck yourselves,” referring to New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, one of the small handful of Republican lawmakers to vote in favor of Trump’s impeachment.

While Rafidi’s social media posts don’t clearly indicate whether or not he actually entered the Capitol building on January 6th, they do confirm his presence at the “Stop the Steal” rally and indicate that he did walk over to the Capitol following Trump’s event.

“I was there, heard the entire speech and walked peacefully with thousands singing God bless America and praying on the way to the capital. What’s true now for sure is the FIX IS IN! And it’s all of you in the media and government. What a shame!” he reportedly tweeted on Jan. 13, 2021.

The school board released a statement regarding their decision to appoint Rafidi to the role, writing that he “presented himself as a family man of strong faith with a commitment to education.” However, they note that upon viewing his social media posts, which they say they were unaware of prior to his appointment, they feel that his posts display a “non-civil tone, profane language and generalized condemnation of opposing ideological groups.”

A representative for the Jefferson Federation of Teachers spoke with The Beast and said that teachers were left angered by Rafidi’s appointment to the board.

JFT president Kesler Camese-Jones told the publication, “No one really had an opportunity to vet this individual prior to his appointment.”

One board member initially abstained from casting their vote regarding Rafidi’s appointment but told The Beast that upon seeing his social media posts his “position immediately changed from abstaining to this guy needs to go.”

The board ultimately called Rafidi’s social media posts “indefensible and inconsistent” with its mission. He has been asked to resign from his role on the board.

Featured image via Flickr/Blink O’fanaye, under Creative Commons license 2.0

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