GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA -- Greensboro City Council has ousted a white official who refused a Black resident’s request to be addressed by her doctoral title during a televised meeting Tuesday night.
The incident Monday happened at the end of a four-hour Zoning Commission meeting in which Doctor Carrie Rosario, an associate professor at UNC Greensbroro expressed concerns about a development project near her home which lead to a tense exchange between her and Tony Collins, a member of the Greensboro Zoning Commission.
In Tuesday nights meeting Collins was removed from city council.
“It was a very disrespectful exchange between an important commissioner and a public citizen,” said City Councilwoman Sharon Hightower, who called for the vote to remove Collins, according to the news outlet. “That should never happen.”
During the exchange, Collins referred to her as “Mrs. Rosario.”
“It’s Dr. Rosario, thank you, sir,” she replied.
“If Mrs. Rosario has something,” Collins continued.
“Dr. Rosario,” she said again.
“Well, you know, I’m sorry. Your name says on here ‘Carrie Rosario.’ Hey Carrie,” Collins persisted.
“It’s Dr. Rosario,” she said yet again. “I wouldn’t call you Tony, so please, sir, call me as I would like to be called.”
“It doesn’t really matter,” Collins replied.
“It matters to me. And out of respect, I would like you to call me by the name that I’m asking you to call me by,” Rosario said.
“Your screen says Carrie Rosario,” he responded.
“I’m verbalizing my name is Dr. Carrie Rosario,” she said. “And it really speaks very negatively of you as a commissioner to be disrespectful.”
Collins insisted that he was not trying to disrespect her.
Hightower told other members Collins was using his “white privilege” by continuously refusing Rosario’s request.
