School Boards Seek Help Addressing Threats from Parents
Groups of angry, conservative parents have been making their concerns known since the re-opening of many U.S. schools following the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As many school boards have issued mask mandates, parents have assembled in protest bearing signs and t-shirts reading “I don’t co-parent with the government.” But these “culture wars,” as they’re being referred to, go deeper than just masks.
Parents of Los Alamitos, CA descended upon their school board after one teacher asked his students their preferred pronouns. In many states, parents are showing up in numbers to school board meetings to fight the use of critical race theory, which aims to teach students about race and racially biased systems within the U.S.
In light of these parental protests, a group which represents school boards has reached out to President Joe Biden to ask for federal assistance in investigating some of the more violent threats they are facing.
“Parents and community members have been disrupting meetings and threatening board members in person, online, and through the mail in a trend that merits attention from federal law enforcement agencies,” the National School Boards Association say in a letter to Biden.
Typically, threats to school board members are handled by local law enforcement; however, the amount and level of some threats warrant federal intervention, the association say. It also asked for the Justice Department, FBI, Homeland Security, and Secret Service to help monitor threat levels and assess risks to students, educators, board members, and school buildings.
“As these acts of malice, violence, and threats against public school officials have increased, the classification of these heinous actions could be the equivalent to a form of domestic terrorism and hate crimes,” the association writes.
The association represents more than 90,000 school board members in 14,000 public school districts. The letter documents 20 instances of threats, harassments, interruptions, and acts of intimidation. School board members have received threats in person, online, and through the mail in almost every state across the county.
School board members are largely unpaid volunteers, usually former educators or parents who step up to help shape school policy, choose a superintendent, and manage the budget. Though, the current climate has forced many members to resign or not seek re-election.
“Whatever you feel about masks, it should not reach this level of rhetoric,” says NSBA Interim Executive Director Chip Slaven.
