Buffalo School Board sessions often turn contentious, with voices raised and accusations hurled. Last night's meeting, however, reached new levels as protesters created an uproar that prompted security to take action.
The session began in Council Chambers where a wave of protesters dominated the proceedings. That forced a recess to allow board members to resume their discussion behind a security wall in their regular meeting room.
On hand demanding the removal of Carl Paladino from the board were protesters from a variety of groups, including Just Resisting, Showing up for Racial Justice and Queers for Racial Justice.
"By resisting, right, and by continuing to show that we will not stand for him being on the school board. We have done billboards on the 33 and we have done...protests," said Jayden Mcclam of Just Resisting, who also assailed board members Larry Quinn and Patty Pierce "because they allow him (Paladino) to continue to be on there and they defend him constantly and they defend his remarks and that's horrible."
When the meeting was stopped in the Council Chamber, the board members moved to their regular board room and the chanting protestors were kept out of the remainder of the meeting by Buffalo police, City Hall security officers and school security officers.
When the board resumed its agenda an extended argument emerged over security in an incident last month when a process server made it to the Council Chamber floor to try to serve Paladino with legal papers in one of the attempts to remove him.
