Official's 'Dirty Girl' Quip Draws Fire (Riordan (R) insults preschooler)

[Khephra]

LOS ANGELES -- The head of the California NAACP is demanding state Education Secretary Richard Riordan resign for jokingly telling a preschooler that her name, Isis, meant "stupid dirty girl."

snip.........

The conversation, videotaped by KEYT-TV, took place Thursday at a promotional event for summer reading at Santa Barbara's central library. The unidentified girl, who appeared to be a preschooler, asked Riordan if he knew that her name meant "Egyptian goddess."

Riordan replied, "It means stupid dirty girl."

After nervous laughter in the room, the girl again told Riordan the meaning of her name.

"Hey, that's nifty," he said.


http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/sns-ap-girls-name,0,5738906.story?coll=sns-ap-nation-headlines