Sunday, December 10, 2023
Subscriber Login
My Profile
SpotlightNews
  • Home
  • News
    • Election 2023
    • Business
      • Spotlight On Business
      • Spotlight on Finance
    • Crime and Police
    • Discover-Towns
      • Discover Coeymans Selkirk and Feura Bush
      • Discover Delmar
      • Discover Glenmont
      • Discover Guilderland
      • Discover Latham and Boght
      • Discover Loudonville
      • Discover Menands
      • Discover Slingerlands
      • Discover Village of Colonie
      • Discover Voorheesville and New Scotland
    • Fire Departments
    • Government
    • Milestones
    • Schools
    • Sports
    • Obituaries
  • The Spot 518
    • Galleries
    • Art
    • Food and Recipes
    • Health & Fitness
    • Music
    • Theatre
  • Hot Spots Calendar
    • Calendar Listings
    • Submit Your Event
  • Opinion
    • Blogs
    • Our Opinion
    • Point of View
    • Your Opinion
  • Family Now
    • Parenting News
    • Senior News
  • Towns
    • Albany County
    • Bethlehem
    • Colonie
    • Guilderland
    • New Scotland
  • Classifieds
    • Employment – Hire Power
    • Services In the Spotlight
    • Classified Listings
    • Advertiser Login
  • Subscribe
    • Subscriber login
    • Give the gift of news
    • Join us – subscribe today
    • Newsletter sign up
    • Renew Subscription
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Election 2023
    • Business
      • Spotlight On Business
      • Spotlight on Finance
    • Crime and Police
    • Discover-Towns
      • Discover Coeymans Selkirk and Feura Bush
      • Discover Delmar
      • Discover Glenmont
      • Discover Guilderland
      • Discover Latham and Boght
      • Discover Loudonville
      • Discover Menands
      • Discover Slingerlands
      • Discover Village of Colonie
      • Discover Voorheesville and New Scotland
    • Fire Departments
    • Government
    • Milestones
    • Schools
    • Sports
    • Obituaries
  • The Spot 518
    • Galleries
    • Art
    • Food and Recipes
    • Health & Fitness
    • Music
    • Theatre
  • Hot Spots Calendar
    • Calendar Listings
    • Submit Your Event
  • Opinion
    • Blogs
    • Our Opinion
    • Point of View
    • Your Opinion
  • Family Now
    • Parenting News
    • Senior News
  • Towns
    • Albany County
    • Bethlehem
    • Colonie
    • Guilderland
    • New Scotland
  • Classifieds
    • Employment – Hire Power
    • Services In the Spotlight
    • Classified Listings
    • Advertiser Login
  • Subscribe
    • Subscriber login
    • Give the gift of news
    • Join us – subscribe today
    • Newsletter sign up
    • Renew Subscription
No Result
View All Result
Spotlight News
No Result
View All Result
Home Towns Bethlehem

A ‘mortified’ school board member apologizes for his use of derogatory word

Michael Hallisey by Michael Hallisey
November 4, 2021
in News, Schools
Reading Time: 2 mins read

DELMAR — A contrite Bethlehem School Board Member told the community he was “mortified” once he learned a word he had used during a recent board meeting was offensive as he publicly apologized on Wednesday, Nov. 3.

“I want to apologize to the community and to anyone who was offended and hurt by my description of an Asain-American girl in the book ‘Eyes That Kiss [in the Corners],’’’ Jonathan Fishbein said. “I honestly had no idea and I was mortified to learn that the ‘O word’ was offensive to some. If I had been aware, I never would have used it. I chose my current public service in education because education is important for a culturally rich and diverse and inclusive society.

“I’ve learned from this experience and it will not be repeated.”

Bethlehem administrators set aside time during its Oct. 20 meeting to recognize its members as part of New York State School Boards Association School Board Recognition Week. Board members presented stacks of books of which they had chosen from a predetermined list that would later be donated in each of their names to various schools within the district.

Board members selected from a common theme of topics that included racism and cultural awareness from critically acclaimed books, some of which have been listed on the New York Times Best Sellers’ list.

Fishbein had shared details from his books to be donated to Hamagrael Elementary. Among the six titles he chose was Joanna Ho’s “Eyes That Kiss in the Corners.” The best-selling author, who is Chinese and is vice-principal of her San Francisco high school, wrote the story about a young Taiwanese girl who notices her eyes look different from her friends.

“‘And through her mother and other powerful women in her life she learns to really appreciate that her eyes are different, that they are beautiful, and it brings her a great sense of beauty in honor of herself and self-empowerment,” he said. “It’s a wonderful book. I hope every girl in the school gets to read it.”

But, instead of describing the main character as Taiwanese or Asian, Fishbein had used the term Oriental. The word, which derives from the Latin word meaning East, is widely considered a derogatory term when used to refer to people of Asian descent. Once commonly used, school administrators and government officials have since phased it out from use in curriculums, documents and legislation for being offensive.

School Board President Holly Dellenbaugh acknowledged that it was an “outdated” term and that mistakes while working towards social justice.

“I know that education and work on social justice issues is a lifelong process,” Dellenbaugh said, “and we all make mistakes. The important thing is to keep the conversation going so that we can learn from those mistakes and we can continue to improve and do better.”

Tags: Asian-AmericanBethlehem CentralJonathan Fishbein
ShareTweetShareShare
Previous Post

Police nab sex predator

Next Post

Stealing over 300K on the job

Leave Comment
Spotlight News

Spotlight News is a division of Community Media Group, LLC. Our local offices are located at 341 Delaware Ave., Delmar, NY 12054. You can contact us at 518.439.4949.

Browse

  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact the Editor
  • Employment
  • Our Team
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Legal Notices Portal

© 2023 Community Media Group, LLC - 341 Delaware Ave. Delmar, NY 12054. 518.439.4949

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Election 2023
  • News
    • Crime and Police
    • Fire Departments
    • Milestones
    • Real Estate and Housing
    • Schools
    • Sports
    • Spotlight On Business
    • Spotlight on Finance
  • The Spot 518
    • Galleries
    • Art
    • Theatre
    • Music
    • Food and Drink
    • Health & Fitness
  • Hot Spots Calendar
  • Newsletter Sign Up
  • Opinion
  • Classifieds
    • Advertiser Login
    • Service Directory
    • Hire Power – Employer Spotlight
  • Capital District Family Now
    • Parenting News
    • Senior News
  • Towns
    • Albany County
    • Bethlehem
    • Colonie
    • Guilderland
  • Log In
  • Subscribe

© 2023 Community Media Group, LLC - 341 Delaware Ave. Delmar, NY 12054. 518.439.4949