Griffin NealEditor’s note: An earlier version of this article should have identified Mark Burson as an adjunct instructor, not an assistant professor.
Gail Brown, President of MS Critterz — the organization contracted by the city of Oxford to run the Oxford animal shelter — has resigned following public revelation of racist Facebook posts. Her resignation was accepted at Monday night’s MS Critterz board meeting.
Despite her resignation, Brown will remain on the shelter’s board.
Brown issued an apology following her resignation: “I am so sorry. I want to truly apologize to the staff, who worked so hard, the board of directors, the City and County officials and the community for the disruption that has been caused by old Facebook posts that I have made.”
Following the board meeting, there was a 15-minute session allowing members of the public to voice concern over Brown’s Facebook posts.
During public comments, Mark Burson, an integrated marketing communications assistant professor in the School of Journalism and New Media, repeatedly pressed Alderman Janice Antonow on whether or not she was aware of Brown’s history before Brown was awarded a $106,000 contract to take over the animal shelter.
Antonow previously served as the liaison between the Board of Aldermen and the Oxford Lafayette Humane Society, where Brown was first ousted in 2017 for her racist Facebook posts.
Antonow denied knowledge of Brown’s posts, despite multiple OLHS board members, and the meeting’s minutes, that claim that she was present in the room in which the vote took place to remove Brown from the OLHS board. Despite repeated requests, Antonow could not be reached for comment.
