Regent apologizes after being accused of posting racist tweet about Harris

A member of the Nevada Board of Regents has come under fire for a tweet of a video clip using racial tropes to criticize Vice President Kamala Harris.

In a Monday tweet on X, Stephanie Goodman, a representative for District 13, retweeted a video clip from an account called @PapiTrumpo and added three laughing emojis. It is a doctored video clip from the film “Tropic Thunder,” in which an actor in blackface speaks to a Black character. At the bottom of the initial video is text labeling the actor in blackface as “Kamala Harris,” and the Black actor as “Actual Black people.”

Goodman told the Review-Journal that it was in reference to national online discussion about Harris changing her voice depending on her audience.

“Sorry you are offended” is an unacceptable response from an elected official who oversees the edu of thousands of NV students

You posted a clip from #TropicThunder w/a character pretending to be Black. @KamalaHarris IS Black. Who are you to question that? #NoRacistRegents @VP https://t.co/MeD1iw5G97 pic.twitter.com/Sr08d0ibkr

— PLAN Action (@PLANactionNV) September 3, 2024

Goodman, the former daughter-in-law of Las Vegas Mayors Carolyn and Oscar Goodman, was elected to the Board of Regents in 2022. She served as Oscar Goodman’s chief of staff for several years after he was elected mayor in 1999 before resigning when she got engaged to one of his sons, Eric Goodman.

Among other things, one of her goals is ensuring free speech on college campuses, according to her page.

Shelly Quiroz Cruz-Crawford, a representative for District 8, tweeted later Monday, calling out Goodman’s post.

“This is one of many recent examples that are unacceptably harmful to our students, staff & community,” she wrote.

I have been made aware of a tweet from a fellow regent regarding the racial identity of our VP. This is one of many recent examples that are unacceptably harmful to our students, staff & community. As the IDEA chair, I’m navigating the best course of action w/IDEA council.

— Doctora Michelee “Shelly” Quiroz Cruz-Crawford (@ExtraAdmin) September 3, 2024

Goodman told the Review-Journal that she did not think before making the post, and apologizes now.

“It was irresponsible,” she said. “I shouldn’t have posted it. Of course we all have freedom of speech, but of course my speech should be measured because I’m an elected official.”

She said she initially retweeted it without thinking because she thought it was funny and liked the movie, and did not know it would be offensive. She did know that the movie depicted someone wearing blackface.

“I didn’t think about the blackface, and that is my fault for messing that up. I saw that it was a parody on how she is changing her language depending on the region,” she said.

When asked why she thought that was funny, she responded: “When you think about humor, it’s a visceral reaction. So it’s literally as simple as that.”

Goodman said she removed the post as soon as she saw people criticizing it online. She added that if it had been the other way around, she would have reached out to the person directly instead of taking to the internet.

“I run a center for gambling addiction,” she said. “I advocate for everyone.”

Previous incident

In June, then-vice chair of the Board of Regents’ Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access Committee Donald Sylvantee McMichael Sr. made comments that received backlash for being antisemitic.

“We have a small group of people — because they were set upon in World War II — have the notion that they can set themselves up in a higher position than anyone else in the United States,” McMichael said in a video recording of the meeting posted on X.

“Some Jewish students are frightful to come to campus. Get in line,” he said in another clip. “There’s others who have been here a lot longer and who have been treated more poorly, and for you to come and say that, ‘Oh my gosh, just remember, it been World War II, we had the Holocaust and they were in concentration camps.’ We still have concentration camps here in the United States.”

McMichael was kicked off the committee and lost in the primary election, meaning he will no longer serve on the board in January.

Goodman responded to criticism on X, saying that it was simply footage of a movie, and not making fun of racial identity.

“It was comedy. I apologized to the people I respect and I removed it,” she wrote on X.

X post draws concern

Cruz-Crawford said she understood that Goodman may not have meant anything by the post, but she said she remained concerned about its impact.

“You posting that shows that we need implicit bias/microaggression training and the impact it has on grad rates. We’ve been working tirelessly on increasing Black graduation rates. This post does not support our initiative as an institution,” Cruz-Crawford wrote.

Both women said they would talk to each other in person.

Quentin-Michael Savwoir, president of the Las Vegas branch of the NAACP, also criticized Goodman’s tweet.

“This is unacceptable and entirely unbecoming of a leader in our community. The students, faculty, staff and parents of @NSHE deserve better. Much better,” he wrote.

Goodman replied, writing: “I’m sorry you are offended. It is from a comedy. It is making fun of how the Presidential nominee changes her accent depending on the region she is speaking,” she wrote in response.

She clarified that her X account is a personal account and not representative of the Nevada System of Higher Education.

PLAN Action Nevada, the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada Action Fund, posted a screenshot of the now-deleted tweet and criticized Goodman’s apology.

“‘Sorry you are offended’ is an unacceptable response from an elected official who oversees the edu of thousands of NV students,” the account wrote.

The president of the National Action Network Las Vegas chapter Robert Bush wrote to the Review-Journal that he was “appalled” by Goodman’s post.

“The content of her post is unequivocally racist and wholly unacceptable. It not only perpetuates harmful stereotypes but also undermines the principles of equality and respect that are fundamental to our community,” he wrote.

He called on her to make a public apology and take steps to address the issue.

“Our community deserves leaders who champion diversity and inclusivity, not those who engage in divisive and prejudiced rhetoric for likes on social media or to be liked in the community,” he wrote.

Nevada State University President DeRionne Pollard also went on X to criticize Goodman but said that the tweet did not surprise her, given her other posts. Aside from this tweet, Goodman’s X account is filled with political posts, including a pinned advertisement for Donald Trump at the top of her page.

It is both offensive and lacks understanding of cultural linguistics and racial identity. But please don’t remove it on my account. It didn’t surprise me given the tenor of recent postings and the political environment that has revealed so much more than for whom one votes.

— Dr. DeRionne Pollard (she/her) (@DrPollard_NS) September 3, 2024

In her most recent tweet on the issue, Goodman said that a colleague had helped her understand her post.

“He shared with me that the video I reposted is a racial trope. I did not see past the comedy and offended people in the process. As human beings all we can do is learn from our mistakes. I am smarter for it and grateful for the conversation,” she wrote.

This story has been updated to correctly identify a now-deleted post by Stephanie Goodman. It was a video clip.

Contact Katie Futterman at kfutterman@reviewjournal.com.