'Too Educated': Unacceptable Disqualifier for Black Women

"Brackney has a Ph.D. and more than 35 years of experience in law enforcement. She served as a commander for the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and as George Washington University's police chief, and she was appointed chief of police for Charlottesville, Va., the summer after the Unite the Right rally there left a woman dead in 2017."

"According to her bio on the U.S. Library of Congress website, Brackney is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, the United States Secret Service Dignitary Protection course and the Redstone Arsenal "bomb school" for managers. Additionally, she was a 2024 Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative Fellow."

"Ashby Foote, one of the two white council members, cast the dissenting vote. He deemed Brackney "too well educated and charming" to lead the Jackson Police Department."

Jackson, Mississippi, a city with an 82 percent Black population, has a Black mayor and majority-Black city council. Mayor John Horhn nominated RaShall Brackney as the next police chief. Brackney holds a Ph.D., has over 35 years of law enforcement experience, and has served as commander for Pittsburgh's police bureau and chief of police for George Washington University and Charlottesville, Virginia. She is an FBI National Academy graduate, Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative Fellow, and Distinguished Visiting Professor at George Mason University. The city council confirmed her appointment 6-to-1, with white council member Ashby Foote casting the sole dissenting vote, claiming she was too well-educated and charming for the role.

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