Houston Rep. Harold Dutton resigns from Texas Black Caucus after quarrel

Texas state Rep. Harold Dutton (D-Houston) filed his resignation letter with the Texas Legislative Black Caucus over the weekend after he was not selected as a panelist for a public education conversation planned for the group’s 50th Anniversary Legislative Summit this April. 

“I recently reviewed the internal run of the show for the 50th Anniversary of the Texas Legislative Black Caucus Summit, and I could not believe my eyes,” Dutton wrote in a March 24 letter addressed to state Rep. Ron Reynolds (D-Missouri City), who chairs the caucus. “You have proposed a panel on public education and did not include me while choosing persons outside the Texas Legislative Black Caucus. That is simply beyond words—most of which are not suitable for this letter.” 

In the letter, Dutton accuses Reynolds of participating in “stank leadership” and claims he wasn’t picked because of differences in opinion between himself and caucus leaders.

“Perhaps that is your way of retaliating for the policy differences between us,” Dutton wrote. “Either way, you are engaging in stank leadership which ignores the plight of Black Texans. You should be ashamed, and as I was writing this, it came back to me that when you faced criminal troubles, I was the only person that came to your rescue.” 

In a Monday interview, Reynolds addressed Dutton’s resignation and the personal jabs in the letter referencing the caucus chair’s criminal record. Reynolds was found guilty in November 2015 of engaging in a scheme to illegally solicit potential clients for his law firm, in which he was sentenced to one year in jail and posted bond. Reynolds was released from the Montgomery County jail after serving four months of his sentence. 

The chairman described Dutton’s remarks on his legal record as “juvenile and unprofessional.”

“That verbiage and that terminology, I would not want for my children who are in middle school to write something like that,” Reynolds said. “I responded internally to the members because I believe that this was an internal member matter that he chose to make public as we celebrate the 50th anniversary. My focus is on fighting against this TEA takeover and making sure that our communities have a voice against vouchers against many of these bad policies that Gov. Greg Abbott is pushing.” 

Reynolds said he didn’t speak with Dutton prior to receiving his resignation on Friday and that he hopes Dutton reconsiders his departure.

Chron reached out to Dutton’s office Monday with several clarifying questions about his resignation, but did not hear back before publication.

Dutton’s contentious letter comes at the same time the city is preparing for the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to seize control of Houston ISD, an effort Dutton championed for years and seems to be the lone voice of support for among his Democratic colleagues. The Texas Legislative Black Caucus and Mexican American Caucus have both said they oppose the TEA’s state intervention in HISD. 

Reynolds also said not selecting Dutton to be a part of the public education panel was not an act of retribution for his position on the HISD takeover, but instead made out of caution.

“It potentially could’ve become a chaotic panel because, based on the two public meetings that were previously held at Westbury and Chavez, they had a hostile group of people that were very upset and angry. I believe that likely would’ve occurred and been directed at Rep. Dutton,” Reynolds said. “I didn’t want it to dilute the panel to just that issue. It would’ve potentially undermined everything else that the panel was trying to discuss, like vouchers, like the need to give teachers a raise, and so many other issues that are plaguing our public schools.”

Reynolds noted that Dutton’s support of the HISD takeover is unusual among his Democratic colleagues.

“Rep. Dutton finds himself in a unique place where the overwhelming consensus, even from his own district, is not in favor of this hostile TEA takeover,” Reynolds said. “I think he’s on the wrong side of history.”

In a panel hosted by the news outlet The Texan earlier this year, Dutton touted that the takeover was initially his idea, and that he made a deal with Republican lawmakers after witnessing poor accountability ratings at some HISD campuses, more specifically his alma mater, Wheatley High School.

Dutton wrote the 2015 amendment in House Bill 1842, which allowed the state to seize control of a school district if one campus had consecutive years of failed accountability ratings. This month, Dutton doubled down on his support for the takeover in an opinion piece published by the Houston Chronicle.

In its takeover announcement, TEA officials cited prior mismanagement by the HISD school board and consecutive failed accountability ratings at Wheatley as reasons for its involvement in the district. Local officials maintain that the intervention is unnecessary, noting Wheatley has improved its accountability rating to a C since first being dinged by TEA. HISD as a whole received a B rating from the state in its most recent evaluation.

Last week, the TEA hosted two of four planned community meetings on the state-appointed board of managers set to replace the elected HISD School Board after June 1. At its first meeting held last Tuesday at Westbury High School, TEA representatives met with pushback and outrage from Houston community members. Similar demonstrations were held at a second community meeting held at Chavez High School on Wednesday night. The department is hosting its next public forum on Wednesday, March 29, at Delmar Stadium on 2020 Magnum Road. 

Reynolds said he doesn’t want the same chaos at the summit.

“There’s a lot of things that are facing Black Texans, and I made a decision as chair. I stand by it firmly and I believe that the decision is very respectful to make sure it doesn’t become a circus by protestors,” Reynolds added.

Dutton is one of the longest-serving Texas House of Representatives members, winning his first election in 1984. The Texas Legislative Black Caucus was created in 1973.