Global Courant
A former Canadian principal died by suicide after filing a lawsuit against the Toronto District School Board in response to harassment he faced for disagreeing with an anti-racism instructor who claimed Canada was more racist than the US.
Richard Bilkszto, 60, worked for the school district for 24 years and retired in 2019, according to the Toronto Star. He continued to do contract work as a fill-in until his reputation was “systematically destroyed” after he challenged a black instructor during two anti-racism training sessions in 2021, he claimed in a lawsuit filed against the district earlier this year.
The instructor reportedly accused him of supporting white supremacy because he opposed her claims.
In a statement posted on social media, Bilkszto’s lawyer, Lisa Bildy, said her client committed suicide on July 13 because the harassment resulting from the training sessions left him with “serious mental problems”, adding that the “stress and effects” of the incidents “continued to plague him”.
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Richard Bilkszto, 60, took his own life on July 13 due to intimidation and harassment, his lawyer said. (X (formerly Twitter))
On April 26, 2021, Toronto District School Board teachers attended an anti-racism training on black people’s struggles, the Toronto Star reported. The session was led by Kike Ojo-Thompson, founder of the KOJO Institute, a consultancy that provides anti-racism training.
Bilkszto claimed in his lawsuit that Ojo-Thompson had told teachers that Canada could be considered more racist than the US because Canada “never reckoned with its anti-black history”. Bilkszto, who disagreed with the instructor and disputed her comments, was convicted of appearing to undermine a black woman.
“We’re here to talk about anti-black racism, but you in your whiteness think you can tell me what’s really going on for black people,” Ojo-Thompson said, according to the lawsuit.
At a follow-up session a week later, Ojo-Thompson reportedly recalled their disagreement from the first session and used Bilkszto’s efforts to challenge her claims as a “real-life” example of someone supporting white supremacy.
The Toronto Star reported that the anti-racism training was led by Kike Ojo-Thompson, founder of the KOJO Institute. (KOJO Institute)
Bilkszto said he reported Ojo-Thompson’s alleged misconduct but claimed the school board failed to look into it, adding that an unidentified board member allegedly praised Ojo-Thompson for handling his “inconvenience”.
The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board investigated the incident after Bilkszto filed a “mental stress injury” claim and found that Ojo-Thompson’s behavior was “offensive, egregious and obnoxious, rising to the level of workplace harassment and bullying”. Bildy said the investigation considered her client a victim and he was offered two months of lost earnings.
Despite the investigation’s findings, Bilkszto said his reputation was tarnished by the instructor’s comments about him and the school board’s response.
After a six-week sick leave later that year, the district would not reinstate his contract, the Toronto Star reported. Bilkszto claimed this was because of his damaged reputation or in retaliation for asking the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board to investigate the incident.
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Richard Bilkszto worked for the Toronto District School Board for 24 years and retired in 2019, but continued to do contract work as a substitute. (Getty)
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In his last months of life, Bilkszto is said to have spent his time advocating against the district’s various programs aimed at tackling inequality.
The school board thanked him in a statement following Bilkszto’s death for his 24 years of service and for returning to the district as a substitute after his retirement in 2019.
“Our hearts go out to Richard’s family and loved ones,” district spokesman Ryan Bird said in a statement to the Toronto Star. “He was a strong supporter of students – especially those in adult and alternative education – and worked tirelessly to create an environment that fostered student success for students of all ages.”
The KOJO Institute said in a statement earlier this month that the allegations in Bilkszto’s lawsuit “give an inaccurate and incomplete picture” of what happened during the workouts.
