U46 School Board Member Resigns After 'Flaggate' Comments

ELGIN, IL — Elgin Area School District U-46 board member Traci O'Neal Ellis has resigned from the board, according to reports. She made the announcement Monday night.

Ellis' resignation comes as a result of what she calls "flaggate," when she compared the American flag to toilet paper and supported NFL players who decided to kneel during the national anthem before football games. A wave of negative comments and death threats came her way, she said.

But, according to the Daily Herald, Ellis said her resignation isn't because of the threats themselves. She said the event has opened opportunities for her.

"There is no doubt that the vicious campaign of hate and the racist and white supremacist vitriol that followed was intended to destroy me," she said Monday night, according to the Herald. But, as it turns out, it worked for my good. Flaggate has created numerous opportunities for me to take my social justice activism to the national level."

Despite the death threats, Ellis didn't apologize for the comment she made. She did apologize to the school board, however, for the distractions she sparked.

Ellis plans now to focus on social justice issues, more specifically "racism, police reforms and equity," she said, the Herald reported.

More at the Daily Herald

Article image via SDU46 website