Danielle Johnson was in the middle of a business meeting when her phone buzzed insistently. She normally wouldn’t have checked it, but something about the persistent vibration made her glance at the screen. Her blood ran cold as she watched the video of her daughter’s hair being shorn away by a teacher whose authority had clearly gone to her head.
Danielle’s first instinct was shock, which quickly morphed into a fierce, protective anger. How dare someone lay a hand on her daughter? The personal violation, the blatant racism — it was too much to process in the sterile boardroom. She excused herself, heart pounding with a mix of fury and determination.
As a CEO, Danielle had faced her share of challenges and discrimination, but nothing compared to the primal outrage she felt watching that video. Her immediate priority was Alyssa’s well-being. She drove straight to Jefferson Middle School, her mind racing with what she would say and do.
