From his Los Angeles home, Johnathan Perkins, a Black diversity, equity and inclusion director at UCLA, had a different take. Across more than 47,000 Bluesky posts, Perkins frequently derides the Trump administration, including posts this year criticizing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem amid Minneapolis immigration raids. Perkins, the former UCLA DEI director, said he plans to sue the university over his firing. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)While a student, he entered the spotlight in May 2011 when he recanted an article he wrote in a campus law publication. In 2022, when employed at UCLA, Perkins tweeted that “no one wants to openly admit [we all] hope Clarence Thomas dies,” calling him “Uncle Thomas”.

Source: Los Angeles Times February 05, 2026 14:50 UTC