Parents have been growing increasingly irritated with how the school board has handled prominent issues in their communities, such as COVID, leading to protests taking place in states all over the country.
While these protests go on, more people begin to lose faith in the once sound system that the board had with governing issues involving schools.
The parents feel as if their views are not being seen and represented through the decisions that the board is making, leading them to dangerous methods in order to be heard. However, the members feel unsafe as the protests increase in size and frequency, although they refuse to change their policy making system, sticking to their voting rules because they believe it is the most efficient way to make decisions in the community.
Letters
“It is too bad that your mama is an ugly communist w**** If she doesn’t quit or resign before the end of this year, we will k*** her, but first we will k*** you!”
This is one of the many vulgar notes left on the doorstep of a school board member, Brenda Sheridan, and the threats continue to get worse as this problem goes on. In the last year, ProPublica has reported over 30 states with 90 incidents about parents and protesters taking over school board meetings. The reasons for takeovers range from COVID-19 to trans rights.
Loudoun County, Virginia is where most of these letters are being received with death threats getting so bad that board members have had to move houses, in fear of their lives.
There were over 22 letters sent to the board members of this County, most of them full of actual threats with real chances of violence or insinuations that the board members would be better off dead.
Physical Violence
In 2021, one of the most relevant issues the school board discussed was COVID. During the first few board meetings, parents were told they would be allowed to observe the meetings via live stream.
This did not stop parents and protestors alike from showing up at the actual meetings and banging on the windows. The situation has been escalating since 2020, which led to protests taking more desperate measures, in hopes of their wants being met by the board.
Protestors have disguised themselves as visitors and gained entry by following behind an actual visitor. Upon the protestors entering the premises, that particular school board meeting had to be called off.
As well as parents and protestors being upset, board members have been threatening other board members. In Johnston County, Wake County’s southeast neighbor, the vice chair of the Board of Education (Terry Tippett) stood and claimed he would attack another board member, Ron Johnson, with real physical violence.
Johnson remained calm even when Tippett made a motion to move towards him. Two sheriff’s deputies moved to Tippett’s side to prevent any real harm being done.
According to WRAL and perhaps the most shocking part of this event, Lyn Andrews, the orchestrator of the meeting, smiled as the threats were being made and did nothing to stop the claims.
Gatherings had to have intense safety measures put in place, with guest limitations set and most of the meetings going virtual to ensure the board members were protected from outside violence.
Social media
While protests have been very physical with people showing up to meetings and threatening board members, social media sites have been very prominent in the people’s fight against these policies.
According to National Public Radio (NPR), in a YouTube video posted, a man in a black baseball cap and t-shirt is quoted saying, “We are the people so we can go ahead and replace the board. Let’s take a vote. Who’s willing to become the president?”
Later that same night, NPR has record of a man under the name of Derek Gregco, a participant of the earlier YouTube video, streamed an Instagram live in which he said, “The board vacated their seats tonight. So, we then brought in a constitutionalist, and we held a quorum, and we voted in a new board. You are looking at the new president of the Poway Unified School District, apparently.”
It was later clarified by the county officials that the election was a hoax and not at all legitimate, with the usual elected board members still running the district.
Social media was an outlet used to gain followers in the movement against the board’s decision, allowing this group to continue spreading misinformation about the board and the officials as well as gain more traction.
The school board has lost credibility as more people join in the movement protesting the board’s decisions which creates a divide in the community. Now, parents are sending their kids to schools that follow policies they don’t agree with.
This leads to more pressure on the school board because instead of doing what they feel is right, they make policies they think the parents will agree with in hopes of calming them. Furthermore, this adds stress on the community because many of these protests have been violent and according to CNN, a policeman called protestors a threat to public safety.
Communities that once felt safe and protected have now been compromised because of the ongoing conflict.
