Mischief and criminal harassment charges have been filed against a woman in Whitehorse in relation to ongoing disruptions at Holy Family Elementary School in the city’s Porter Creek neighbourhood.
The charges were sworn before a justice of the peace on May 2.
According to court documents, the charges against Kenechukwu Peter Onwudinjo stem from several incidents at Holy Family Elementary School this year. Onwudinjo is the mother of a student who has attended the school and is currently running for a seat on the school’s council.
From January to late April, Onwudinjo allegedly sent numerous emails intended to harass Holy Family Elementary School’s principal “after being informed to not have any further correspondence with her,” according to court files.
During roughly the same time period, Onwudinjo is alleged to have sent harassing emails to a teacher at the school.
Onwudinjo is also accused of banging on windows at the school and “yelling and screaming on numerous occasions” in April.
Along with being criminally charged, Onwudinjo is subject to several conditions. She is forbidden from communicating with the principal and teacher to whom she is accused of sending harassing emails and must not go within 50 metres of Holy Family Elementary School property.
In an email, the RCMP told the News that there is an “ongoing investigation” into the situation. Police said they cannot comment on the charges laid against Onwudinjo as the matter is now before the courts.
Onwudinjo is scheduled to appear in court on June 19 at 9:30 a.m.
Ongoing problems
In mid-April, the News reported that a security guard had been stationed at Holy Family Elementary School amid an “ongoing situation” there. Then, on April 26, the school was closed because of several on-premises incidents the previous day.
On April 25, the school was placed on a “hold and secure” posture after an individual violated an order not to trespass on school grounds. The RCMP attended the scene, according to an email sent by Trevor Ratcliff, the acting assistant deputy minister of schools and student services, to school parents.
Later the same day, the RCMP were called again after the same individual showed up at the school during dismissal and displayed “heightened behaviour,” according to Ratcliff’s email.
READ MORE: Classes cancelled at Whitehorse school on April 26 following trespassing incident
Several parents with inside knowledge of the April 25 events at Holy Family Elementary School have told the News that Onwudinjo was responsible for the disruptions. The News has chosen not to identify these sources due to the sensitive nature of the situation within the school community.
A letter from the Department of Education to Onwudinjo and her husband, David MacMartin, dated March 22, 2024, notes that the couple is barred from entering and remaining on Holy Family Elementary School grounds under the provisions of the School Trespass Act “due to the nature of [their] interactions with members of the school community.”
Racism accusations
Both Onwudinjo and MacMartin, who is also running in the school council election, spoke with the News back in March about their issues with the school, alleging anti-Black discrimination within the school community.
Onwudinjo has stated that Holy Family Elementary School lacks “dedication to education and other activities around Black history.”
She also recounted an incident that allegedly occurred just hours before the school’s Christmas concert was set to begin. She said she asked the principal that students not perform “Jingle Bells” due to its racist past. She acknowledged her request was last-minute but claimed her concerns were not taken seriously.
Onwudinjo and MacMartin also believe their family is being targeted by school staff, school council members and Department of Education officials for drawing attention to what they perceive as anti-Black racism at the school. In correspondence with the News, the couple made clear that they view the restrictive measures against them as an attempt to silence them.
In a letter sent to Education Minister Jeanie McLean on March 26, Onwudinjo said Holy Family Elementary School and Department of Education officials are attempting “to put an administrative padlock over my mouth because I spoke the truth.”
“I called out racism targeted at me and my family, and agents of the government acting in the government’s capacity have tried to destroy my life and the life of my family for calling out anti-Black racism,” Onwudinjo wrote in the letter to the minister.
This is not the first time Onwudinjo has faced challenges with her child’s school. She told the News that she was previously subjected to “attacks” and “profiling” at a Catholic school her daughter previously attended in Calgary.
“The moment you say anything, you become a target if you are a Black woman, that’s it. I’ve been living here for eight years, and that is what Canada has taught me,” Onwudinjo, who originally hails from Nigeria, told the News.
Education department tight-lipped
The Department of Education cannot comment on the specifics of Onwudinjo’s experiences at Holy Family Elementary School due to privacy considerations.
However, a department spokesperson was able to address some of Onwudinjo’s allegations. The spokesperson disputed that instruction on Black history is absent at the school.
“Yukon schools follow B.C. curriculum. Alongside curriculum, most schools, including Holy Family Elementary School, incorporate learning opportunities for students during Black History Month. This can include displays in the school library, specific in-class learning, guest speakers, or other events,” the spokesperson said via email.
The email also noted that the Department of Education takes “inclusion and diversity seriously” and that racist behaviours are unacceptable in Yukon schools. The spokesperson said that allegations of racism are treated seriously and that there is a dispute resolution process to address complaints.
The spokesperson also pointed to the Education department’s Safe and Caring Schools Policy, which applies to school staff, councils and other members of the broader school community.
The purpose of the policy, according to the Yukon government’s website, is to “promote safety of people in the school, ensure all members of the school community are treated with respect and dignity, to promote responsible citizenship, to maintain an environment where conflict and difference can be addressed and to encourage the use of non-violent and restorative approaches to resolve conflict.”
Contact Matthew Bossons at matthew.bossons@yukon-news.com