Principal fired after barring student from prom over spoken word poem

Jun 30, 2016

Earlier this year a suburban Chicago high school found itself in the midst of controversy after a student was banned from prom over a spoken word poem.

Now that school’s principal has been fired.

While the official reason for the dismissal was kept private, Homewood-Flossmoor Principal Ryan Pitcock was let go at a school board meeting, resulting in one board member’s resignation.

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The principal banned senior Taiylar Ball, 18, from her high school prom after she used profanity in a poem called “Dear Black Girls” at the school talent show.

While talking about misogyny and disrespect of black women, Ball used the word “nigga” and in one line said, “You’re only feeling me when my chocolate skin is shining with coconut oil, flexing with my t*ts out on Twitter.”

Ball admitted to finishing her piece only just before the show but said the show’s sponsors knew it wasn’t completely done.

After the performance, Ball was informed she would be banned from her prom. When she pleaded her case, Principal Pitcock responded with a short email saying the decision was “appropriate” and her “actions were offensive to many.”

Ball arrived anyway and says she was barred at the door by school officials. What’s more, she was only allowed to attend her high school graduation after a meeting with school officials.

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School board president Richard Lites defended the decision to fire Principal Pitcock.

“As a board, we acted in the best interest of our staff, community and students,” Lites told the Daily Southtown.

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Meanwhile after earning nearly $1 million dollars in scholarships and multiple college acceptances, Ball is headed to FAMU this fall to study biology.

Ball tweeted that she has already performed her poem for her college classmates. Turns out, no one had a problem with it.