{"id":2647599,"date":"2026-08-20T22:59:01","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T02:59:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fake-hate-school-board-member-created-story-about-hs-football-coach-took-years-and-350k-in-legal-fees-for-truth-to-surface\/"},"modified":"2026-08-20T23:05:40","modified_gmt":"2026-08-21T03:05:40","slug":"fake-hate-school-board-member-created-story-about-hs-football-coach-took-years-and-350k-in-legal-fees-for-truth-to-surface","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fake-hate-school-board-member-created-story-about-hs-football-coach-took-years-and-350k-in-legal-fees-for-truth-to-surface\/","title":{"rendered":"Fake Hate: School Board Member Created Story About HS Football Coach &#8211; Took Years and $350k in Legal Fees for Truth to Surface"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">46<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffake-hate-school-board-member-created-story-about-hs-football-coach-took-years-and-350k-in-legal-fees-for-truth-to-surface%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2647599&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A woman named keshia thomas, a trustee on the Fresno Unified School District Board, is involved in a contentious case after falsely accusing a former <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fired-football-coach-sues-school-officials-for-retaliation-over-political-differences\/\" title=\"Fired Football Coach Sues School Officials for Retaliation Over Political Differences\">high school football coach<\/a>, Don Arax, of racially abusive language. She claimed Arax called her son the N-word in 2022, leading to a legal battle that has cost the district nearly $370,000 in legal fees. Thomas initially maintained her story but later admitted some statements were inaccurate, adn her son also refuted the racial slur claim.A defamation lawsuit was filed by Arax,and the district announced it will no longer fund Thomas\u2019s legal defense. The case highlights a web of false accusations and the consequences of race-related hoaxes, with parallels drawn to other similar incidents where individuals fabricated or exaggerated racial crimes for personal or financial gain.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_2)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>A race-hustling single black mom of three who falsely accused a white high school football coach of calling her son the N-word is backpedaling amid a damaging defamation lawsuit.<\/p>\n<p>Keshia Thomas \u2014 a trustee with the Fresno (California) Unified School District \u2014 is facing calls to resign after the district shelled out almost $370,000 in legal fees to defend her four-year lawsuit filed by former Bullard High School coach and teacher Don Arax.<\/p>\n<p>The Fresno Teachers Association, local chapter of the California Teachers\u2019 Association, is also urging Thomas to leave the school board and end her campaign for a seat on the Fresno City Council amid questions over her dubious credibility, <a href=\"https:\/\/abc30.com\/post\/fresno-unified-trustee-apologizes-rejects-calls-resign-amid-defamation-lawsuit\/19695291\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ABC News 30<\/a> in Fresno reported.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow can we, as a community, trust that what she says is accurate, it\u2019s true?\u201d FTA President Manuel Bonilla told the outlet.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Fresno Unified Trustee Keshia Thomas says she will not resign after the Fresno Teachers Association called for her to step down amid new developments in a years-long defamation lawsuit involving a former Bullard High School football coach.<br \/> FULL STORY: <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/1FPF0pTF5m\">https:\/\/t.co\/1FPF0pTF5m<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Fg9ofVleXI\">pic.twitter.com\/Fg9ofVleXI<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 FOX26 News (@KMPHFOX26) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/KMPHFOX26\/status\/2090110475090444496?\">August 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The race hoax unfolded in 2022, when Keshia Thomas claimed that Arax had called her son the N-word at football practice.<\/p>\n<p>Thomas <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fresno.courts.ca.gov\/system\/files\/tentative-rulings\/07-21-26-dept-501-cmw.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">made the accusation<\/a> on the May 17, 2022, episode of the GV Wire podcast \u201cUnfiltered.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas claimed Arax had uttered the racial slur in 2013, when her son was in high school.<\/p>\n<p>Arax filed a defamation lawsuit in 2022, shortly after Thomas made the allegation.<\/p>\n<p>The Fresno Unified School District has been helping to pay Thomas\u2019 legal bills for four years because she is a trustee, or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/44-san-francisco-schools-to-see-name-changes\/\" title=\"44 San Francisco schools to see name changes\">school board member<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Last week, Thomas insisted she never said Arax had used a racial slur.<\/p>\n<p>The school district responded by saying it will no longer pay for Thomas\u2019 legal defense.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFUSD agreed to help cover trustee Thomas\u2019 legal fees at a time when we had no reason to question her account,\u201d the district said in a statement to ABC 30 News.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSince then, new information has come to light. In her deposition, Thomas acknowledged that some of her earlier statements were not accurate, and her son made a similar acknowledgment in his own declaration,\u201d the district added.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThrough June 9, the district has paid $235,330 in defense fees for itself. It has also paid Thomas\u2019 defense costs of $134,421,\u201d the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fresnobee.com\/news\/local\/article316882025.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fresno Bee<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n<p>The district added that Thomas will have to pay her own bills if she\u2019s found guilty of defamation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFUSD has not agreed to indemnify Thomas should she be found liable for defamation,\u201d the district said.<\/p>\n<p>Making matters worse, Keshia Thomas\u2019 own son \u2014 Albert Alford Jr. \u2014 filed a <a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/1rDKX9Xqy8L9OqOAds_QEPq4SyZfsGTME\/view\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">declaration<\/a> on July 27 insisting Arax had never called him the N-word.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt no time did Coach Don Arax ever call me the word \u201cn***er,\u201d \u201dn***a,\u201d the \u201cN-word,\u201d or any other racial slur,\u201d Alford wrote. \u201cI never heard Coach Arax use any racial slur or make any derogatory or racially offensive remark about me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt no time did I ever tell anyone, including [my mother] Keshia Thomas, that Coach Arax used a racial slur toward me,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>Alford\u2019s legal declaration contradicted the account he gave the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fresnobee.com\/news\/local\/article316882025.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fresno Bee<\/a> on Aug. 14.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhile at the [2013 football] camp, another player told me that Coach Arax used the N-word so I decided I didn\u2019t want to play football at Bullard,\u201d Alford told the outlet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I got home from the camp, I told my mom that I heard Coach Arax use the N-word, not about me, just that I\u2019d heard him say it, even though that wasn\u2019t true.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>So a defamatory lie was spewed by an angry mom after her son lied about an incident. This disgusting web of deceit isn\u2019t surprising since the \u201capple doesn\u2019t fall far from the tree.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Only now are they coming forward to admit the truth, after the damage is done.<\/p>\n<p>Arax\u2019s attorney, Brian Whelan, told The Fresno Bee, \u201cCoach Arax has lived with this false accusation for more than four years, while Fresno Unified republished it thousands of times to its own employees. The damage to Coach Arax\u2019s name and reputation has been enormous. He is ready for his day in court \u2014 to clear his name and hold ALL responsible parties accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sadly, this incident mirrors a similar race hoax involving a white youth who was falsely accused of committing a racial hate crime against his black classmate.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"zxx\"><a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/xdrCuy5F45\">pic.twitter.com\/xdrCuy5F45<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 I,Hypocrite (@lporiginalg) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/lporiginalg\/status\/2022838296049529142?\">February 15, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>In February, a Texas jury <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/black-mom-attorney-ordered-pay-3-2-million-white-student-whose-life-tried-ruin-fake-hate-allegations\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">awarded the plaintiff $3.2 million<\/a> after concluding the incident was a hoax fabricated by his classmate\u2019s money-grubbing mother and her race-hustling attorney.<\/p>\n<p>Hopefully, race-hustling agitators will continue to face real accountability for their damning lies going forward.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #171717; display: flex;font-size: 16px;font-weight: 600;line-height: 1.5;margin: 24px 0;padding: 18px 20px 18px 30px;text-align: left;\">\n<div style=\"align-self: stretch;border-left: 3px solid #171717;flex-shrink: 0;padding-left: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/\">Choose The Western Journal as your preferred source on Google and never miss reporting that defends truth, protects freedom, and advances Western civilization<\/a><\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey == typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts = { \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs = [ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i = 0; i < inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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