On December 19th, just a few days before he stepped down from the OU Board of Regents, former Oklahoma City mayor Kirk Humphreys participated in a press conference at John Rex Elementary School to formally apologize for sharing his backward "beliefs" about homosexuals, and in the process, try to salvage what's left of his public reputation and career.
If a downtown elementary school seems like an odd place to apologize for comparing gays to pedophiles, it is, but keep in mind that John Rex Elementary School is a charter school affiliated with the University of Oklahoma, and that OU appointed Kirk to serve on the John Rex Board of Directors. In addition to that, Humphreys was involved in the creation of John Rex and provided funding via his family's foundation.
At the conclusion of the Dec. 19th press conference, Kirk was whisked away for a private meeting with OKC School Board Chair Paula Lewis, OKC NAACP Chair Garland Pruitt, and Freedom Oklahoma's Troy Stevenson. At the last minute, a handful of outraged John Rex student parent protesters were invited to participate.
We acquired via the Ogle Mole Network a synopsis of the meeting that was put together by the parents in attendance. Instead of simply apologizing and listening to what they had to say, they portray Humphreys as being argumentative and combative, doubling-down on some of his controversial comments, and attempting to beat back any call for him to step down from the school's board. As one Mole in attendance put it:
"There was some shouting. By the end, nobody was really listening. Everyone was digging in their heels."