Commissioner John Wiley Price has challenged the Dallas County Commissioners Court after his replacement from the juvenile court.
Price delivered presentations Tuesday to the Commissioners Court on issues with the Parkland Health and Hospital System.
However, he quickly transitioned to the topic of his replacement in the juvenile court.
Commissioner Andrew Sommerman was appointed as the Commissioners Court’s new representative on the Dallas Juvenile Court Board, replacing Price, during their meeting on April 4, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
Price originally labeled the court’s action to place Sommerman as its new representative as “one of those great-white-hope moves,” noting the prevalence of African-American youth in the system.
Price clarified that this statement was based on the movie of the same name that was released in the 1970s. Price was referencing a theme in the film that tended toward white superiority.
“In the flash of a camera, in the blink of an eye, I was removed from a post I had held for almost three decades. The great white hope appeared and everything changed,” Price said during the meeting.
“Suddenly the new minute law firm that I called Jenkins, Sommerman, and Garcia decided on a course change without my consent and suddenly the great white hope has been situated to control the direction of a juvenile population of at least 85% black and brown,” he continued.
The commissioner went on to say that it appeared as though he was neither qualified nor needed for his former position.
Price had previously accused Jenkins of being behind the movement to replace him in juvenile court.
Court staff attempted to interrupt the commissioner and remind him of the original topic meant for the presentation; however, the commissioner continued.
Judge Clay Jenkins allowed the commissioner to continue.
Price affirmed his passion for his career on the Commissioners Court as well as his efforts to serve the community, but maintained that one of his biggest passions was for the juvenile court.
“But for all of my passion, none is more dear or sacred to me than that work on the juvenile justice board,” said Price in the meeting.
Price said that, because he cannot imagine the hardship endured by children in the system, he worked diligently to craft policies to ease their burden. Price maintained that he is still dedicated to taking care of those in the system.
In this presentation, Price charged the court of “monkeying around.”
“The great white hope can’t comprehend in 30 years what I know today,” said Price in the meeting. “While I was [focused] on monkey mugs, the court decided to monkey around with our children’s lives.”
Price was referring to an incident in late 2020 concerning Parkland Health and Hospital System, the county’s public hospital. A Parkland Health vice president gave employees gift bags containing mugs, some of which depicted a cartoon sock monkey, as reported by The Dallas Morning News. Price criticized the gift as racially insensitive to black employees.