Ibram’s Antiracist Research Center
- Wake activist Ibram X. Kendi’s Antiracist Research Center at Boston University had laid off up to twenty employees
- Boston University confirmed that the center had hired 15 to 20 employees as part of the transition to a fellowship model
- Former and current employees claimed the center was poorly managed
Woke activist Ibram’s Antiracist Research Center
Boston University confirmed that the center had laid off 15 to 20 employees out of a staff of 45 as it transitioned to a fellowship model.
“The center is developing into a scholarship model.” Dr. Kendi remains director. “We can confirm that there have been layoffs at the center,” Rachel Lapal Cavallario, vice president of the center, told Fox News on Thursday.
“The university and center are committed to working with impacted employees and supporting them as they navigate their next opportunities,” the statement said.
But employees working there painted a far less diplomatic picture, claiming that Kendi was given too much power and that he mistreated those who worked for him.
He infamously suggested that whites should be discriminated against in order to combat the terrible prejudice previously inflicted on black Americans.
The center opened at BU during the tumultuous summer of 2020, as America anticipated nationwide protests over the police killing of George Floyd.
Wake activist Ibram X. Kendi’s Antiracist Research Center at Boston University had laid off up to twenty employees
Former and current employees alleged that Kendi mismanaged the center
The center opened at BU during the tumultuous summer of 2020, as America anticipated nationwide protests over the police killing of George Floyd
Some former and current employees told the Boston Globe that Kendi mismanaged the center.
“There are different ways it got to this point. “It started very early on when the university decided to create a center that was in the hands of one person, one individual who was given millions of dollars and so much authority,” said Spencer Piston, the faculty director of the University’s policy office Center of publication.
The center’s former deputy head of storytelling, Saida Grundy, said the center lacked structure and the culture was “exploitative” because she was required to work unreasonable hours.
“When I started, it became very clear to me that this was exploitative and other faculty were experiencing the same and worse,” she told the outlet.
Kendi gained recognition in academic circles with his 2019 book “How To Be An Antiracist,” which gained popularity during the global movement for racial equality in 2020.
Then-BU President Robert A. Brown said at the time that Kendi’s leadership would “provide a critical focus on research and policy to help eliminate racism in our country.”
Kendi’s hiring announcement was followed by a flood of donations to BU to support the center and Kendi’s work, including a three-year, $1.5 million donation from biotech company Vertex and a $10 million donation from Twitter founder Jack Dorsey later that summer.
The center’s former deputy head of storytelling, Saida Grundy, said the center lacked structure and the culture was “exploitative.”
Spencer Piston, faculty director of the center’s policy office, said Kendi has too much power in the organization
A few months later, the Rockefeller Foundation donated $1.5 million over two years to fund the center’s COVID-19 Racial Data Tracker.
Kendi’s work, particularly his children’s book “Antiracists Baby,” has been criticized for teaching controversial critical race theory to children.
Kendi defended his books in June 2022 as a way to teach people, including children, to “see racism.”
“Well, actually it’s about teaching people to recognize racism,” Kendi said on “CBS Mornings.” ‘There is a difference. Race is a mirage. Racism is real. And it’s – do you know who’s most likely to be harmed by racism? Our children. Do you know who is least likely to get involved? Our children. That’s what really drives me to do this work.”