Editor’s note: After this story was published, a Long Beach Unified spokesperson confirmed on Thursday, Oct. 2, that the district is investigating.
A high-ranking state lawmaker is pushing the Long Beach Unified School District to investigate a teacher accused of sharing an image of a Black child wearing an ankle bracelet in a text-message chain with other educators.
The image, shared in a group chat for the teachers union contract bargaining team, sparked an investigation by the Teachers Association of Long Beach, but the school district itself declined to launch its own probe, saying it fell outside its scope of authority, according to communications reviewed by the Long Beach Post.
Shortly after the Post published a story on the topic, state Sen. Lena Gonzalez (D-Long Beach) issued a public statement urging LBUSD to reconsider.
“Racist disparaging comments about any child in our Long Beach schools should never be tolerated,” she said. “But learning about the racist text and photo shared by an LBUSD teacher, who is supposed to have the trust of colleagues, students and parents, is horrendous.”
John Solomon, the MacArthur Elementary teacher accused of sending the image, has denied it, maintaining his phone was hacked. A three-member investigative committee appointed by the union found that claim was “simply not credible,” according to the committee’s findings, which the Post obtained.
In addition to concluding that the message evoked racial stereotypes, the committee said the image and Solomon’s follow-up message, “We need this for our runners!” was insensitive to special education students. (Teachers told the Post that “runners” was a reference to some special education students who are prone to wandering off.)
Solomon has since been under pressure to resign from his position as TALB secretary, and union members are organizing to recall him from that position.
The LBUSD declined to comment on the situation, citing employee privacy protections. Solomon has continued to teach at MacArthur Elementary.
Gonzalez, who serves as Senate Majority Leader and chairs the state’s Latino Legislative Caucus, committed to monitoring the situation closely to assess whether further action is necessary.
“I am outraged and incredibly disappointed,” she said in an email to the Post.
“As parents, we put our trust in schools to provide not just academics, but safe, nurturing spaces built on unity, equity, and inclusion,” she said. She called on schools to unite with communities to uplift students, “not spread harmful stereotypes or divisive rhetoric,” especially when “the federal administration is pushing discriminatory deportation tactics.”