Georgetown Law Professor Fired After Degrading Remarks Against Black Students Went Public
Georgetown Law professors Sandra Sellers and David Batson are catching heat following degrading comments made against some of their Black students during a Zoom recording.
According to Daily Beast, the recording was reportedly leaked by a student and is now circulating on social media. The video was left at the disposal for students’ viewing for multiple days. In the recording, Sellers is doing the talking, with Batson making no comments, but seemingly nodding in agreeance.
“You know what? I hate this,” says Sellers in the recording as she speaks about her Black students. “I end up having this angst every semester, and it’s like, oh, come on. You know we get some really good ones but there also are some of them that are just plain at the bottom.”
The BLSA (Black Law Student Association) requested for Sellers to be immediately terminated and for Batson to issue an apology. Sellers has since been fired, according to a statement from Georgetown University Law Center’s dean, Bill Treanor.
“I have further reviewed the incident and have now spoken to Professor Sellers and Professor Batson, giving each the opportunity to provide any additional context,” Treanor said. “ I informed Professor Sellers that I was terminating her relationship with Georgetown Law effective immediately.”
Sellers informed Treanor that she already planned on resigning from her position as a professor. As the office of Diversity works on their investigation, Batson has been placed on administrative leave.
Treanor isn’t taking the matter lightly, adding, “this is by no means the end of our work to address the many structural issues of racism reflected in this painful incident, including explicit and implicit bias, bystander responsibility, and the need for more comprehensive anti-bias training.”
Treanor notes that all students will be fairly graded without the input of Professor Sellers or Professor Batson.
