PENFIELD, NY — Tensions remain high in an upstate New York suburb after a man wearing a gorilla suit and a MAGA hat made an unexpected appearance during a school board hearing over a controversial LGBTQ-themed cartoon book.
The man’s unannounced appearance during a Penfield Central School District hearing Tuesday night in the city of Penfield has been met with accusations of racism; four of the school board members who were present during the meeting are women of color.
The public discussion was originally about whether a picture book that has drawings of naked people was appropriate to be on school bookshelves.
Tuesday night’s meeting, which school board members said was disrupted by parents, was ended early.
Dr. Emily Roberts, president of the Penfield Board of Education, told WHEC News 10, “The intent behind that was to intimidate, the superintendent is a woman of color, and there are four members that were present on that board that are all women of color.”
The man who wore the costume, Jeff Briggs, claimed he didn’t intend for the gorilla costume to be interpreted as a racist attack, News 10 NBC reported.
More on the controversial school board meeting in Penfield, New York.
