Sunday morning, 18-year-old Myneishia Johnson was shot and killed when a gunman opened fire on a Memphis crowd. The high school senior was just a week away from her graduation. In an effort to honor the fallen student, her one-year-old son will accept her diploma at the ceremony this weekend. Her funeral is on Friday.

It’s a sweet gesture that’s been met with unexpected criticism. Booker T. Washington principal Alisha Coleman-Kiner received an email questioning the school’s decision to include Johnson’s child in the program.

Coleman-Kiner posted the email to her Facebook page.

Photo: Facebook / Alisha 'Lisa' Coleman-Kiner — Photo: Facebook / Alisha ‘Lisa’ Coleman-Kiner

Miss Jay - Myneisha Johnson principal response — Photo: Giphy

Coleman-Kiner took this “food for thought” and responded in the best way possible. The principal, who’s also an English teacher, started off by noting the writer’s bad grammar and spelling. She then cited the bible verse, ‪2 Timothy 2:15, followed by “‪#‎Study.”

This is a theme that flows throughout Coleman-Kiner’s letter. She refutes the writer’s judgment with six more facts and includes a scripture with each.

Check out the principal’s reply.

Open letter to the lady who judged my baby….
Good morning!
Thank you so much for your unsolicited ‘food’ for thought. After regurgitating the washback you just emailed (as it was definitely not ‘food’), I offer the following appetizer, entrée, and dessert for you to consider:
1. Never email a high school Principal, who is also an English teacher, without checking the grammar and spelling in said email. In case no one ever told you, these errors sincerely diminish your validity. ‪#‎2Timothy2‬:15 ‪#‎Study‬
2. Never send a formal email of rebuke without first “fact checking’ your claims. That’s something else your English teacher should have taught you. For example, who told you that no one knew who the father is? Where were you when he couldn’t stand under the grief on Sunday at the candlelight vigil? How surprised would you be to learn that both the paternal and maternal grandparents have been actively involved in this child’s life since he arrived? ‪#‎Proverbs6‬:16-19 ‪#‎Abominable‬
3. Stereotyping, as a persuasive device, is an ineffective use of propaganda that allows the person using the device to draw lines around groups of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ people. When you talk about people from the 3rd person point-of-view (‘the attitude and culture of the inner city youth needs…”), you turn those people into objects, which can then strip them of human rights. Side note: I had my first college degree and had been married for some years before I had my daughter, and, even I went out every now and then – without my child. How is it that you know that my student was an irresponsible parent, again? ‪#‎Deuteronomy10‬:18 ‪#‎GodDefends‬
4. Just in case you didn’t know, having a baby is NOT the sin. Pre-marital sex, if we’re counting, is the actual sin. God loves babies. In fact, whenever there is a problem in the world, HE sends a baby with the answer (i.e. Jesus). Because my student was such a great person, maybe God decided to use her as a conduit between her son and the world to provide an answer. That would help make sense (especially for me) of all of this foolishness. Side note: Pre-marital sex may not be YOUR sin, but it only takes one sin to send you to hell, and God never said that sin was only pre-marital sex, and HE loves babies.‪#‎Jeremiah1‬:5 ‪#‎Psalm8‬:2 ‪#‎PurposeInPain‬

Click here to read the entire post. What do you think of the principal’s response? Let us know in the comments!

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Alisha Coleman-Kiner

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