Protests rocked a historically Black college in Missouri for over a week with some of its students calling for the removal of its White president following an administrator’s suicide, according to multiple reports.
Many students of Lincoln University (LU) wore #JUSTICE4BONNIE T-shirts and, alongside the university’s alumni group, called for President John Moseley to be fired after former Vice-President of Student Affairs Dr. Antoinette “Bonnie” Candia-Bailey took her own life Jan. 8, The Associated Press (AP) reported.
Candia-Bailey, an LU alumna, was reportedly fired from her position days before her suicide. She had alleged in an email to her friend and fellow LU alum, Monica Graham, that Moseley harassed her, Graham shared, according to The AP. She also wrote that the president had alluded to her as “an angry Black woman,” the phrase being a “stereotype that has demoralized Black women for decades,” Graham said, the outlet reported. The alleged situation reportedly worsened after Candia-Bailey asked for leave via the Family Medical Leave Act to confront her “severe depression and anxiety,” the administrator wrote, Graham shared.
LU’s Board of Curators President Victor Pasley allegedly responded to Candia-Bailey’s complaint about Moseley back in November 2023, according to emails, Graham shared. He allegedly responded that the board “does not engage in the management of personnel issues for Lincoln University and will not be taking further action related to this issue,” the emails Graham possessed claimed, The AP reported.
Candia-Bailey was “a gifted colleague and always a passionate advocate for Lincoln University,” the university said in its statement on Candia-Bailey’s death.
Many inundated the university’s statement on Facebook with the hashtag #firemoseley, which also gained traction on Twitter.
Moseley offered to go on paid administrative leave as the university’s curators announced an investigation, a separate statement said. Moseley was a basketball coach at the university before becoming president, The AP reported. (RELATED: ‘You Hired A White Woman?’: Staff Member Sues College After She’s Allegedly Demoted For Her Race)
“Why would you appoint a white president for such a position?” asked 53-year-old Eric Malone, an acquaintance of Candia-Bailey’s since their student days, The AP reported.
“When he was the basketball coach, we loved him,” Graham stated, according to The AP. “Everything was great. But then he became president and that’s where we didn’t support that. Again, not because he’s white, but because he wasn’t qualified to lead a university.”
Frederick Engram Jr., an anti-racism assistant professor, tweeted, “HBCUs should not have white presidents. The end.”