A community college in California placed one of its administrators on leave following remarks she made about Japanese Americans incarcerated in World War II.
Joyce Coleman reportedly wondered out loud during a recent meeting why prisoners there “did not just leave,” noting the short height of the fences, reported the Santa Barbara Independent.
Coleman runs the Santa Barbara Community College Extended Learning Program. She reportedly made the remarks at a recent Equal Opportunity Advisory Committee meeting.
Members of the campus staff and Asian American community accused Coleman of victim blaming and said her words and action caused “great harm.”
Coleman has agreed not to comment on the controversy pending the investigation.
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“My sincere apologies to all the people who were deeply hurt by the comments,” Superintendent-President Utpal Goswami wrote in a campus-wide email in a report by The Channel. “We aspire to be a welcoming and equitable community. That requires us to hold ourselves to high standards and work towards building a community that supports each other.”
Goswami met with the School of Extended Learning staff and has also made plans to meet with the Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders affinity group and Ms. Coleman separately.
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