Attorney General Merrick Garland mobilized the FBI and federal prosecutors to meet with local leaders to address parents who ‘pose a threat’ at school board meetings due to objections over mask mandates or the teaching of Critical Race Theory (CRT).
A memorandum issued by the Justice Department Monday addresses “a disturbing spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence against school administrators, board members, teachers, and staff who participate in the vital work of running our nation’s public schools.”
“While spirited debate about policy matters is protected under our Constitution, that protection does not extend to threats of violence or efforts to intimidate individuals based on their views,” the memo reads.
The document is addressed to federal prosecutors and FBI Director Christopher Wray.
Politico describes Garland’s actions as “a notable escalation of the government’s response” to protesters who denounce mask mandates and CRT protocols in some schools.
Attorney General Merrick Garland ordered the FBI to meet with U.S. Attorneys around the country to open up lines of communication about threats against school administrators, board members, teachers and staff. pic.twitter.com/2gIMKnQfO4
— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) October 4, 2021
RELATED: School Board Recalls Surge In Battle Against Critical Race Theory
AG Directs FBI To Respond To School Board Threats
Attorney General Merrick Garland goes on to warn parents and protesters who ‘threaten’ school board members, educators, or school officials.
“The Department takes these incidents seriously and is committed to using its authority and resources to discourage these threats, identify them when they occur, and prosecute them when appropriate,” he said.
The swift action taken by the AG in directing the FBI to respond to a supposed uptick in threats at school board meetings appears to be a direct response to a plea sent by a group representing school boards to President Biden.
In the letter, the National School Boards Association asks for an investigation into whether or not confrontations from outraged parents are a violation of the Patriot Act.
The group suggests that “the classification of these heinous actions could be the equivalent to a form of domestic terrorism and hate crimes.”
“Coupled with attacks against school board members and educators for approving policies for masks to protect the health and safety of students and school employees, many public school officials are also facing physical threats because of propaganda purporting the false inclusion of critical race theory within classroom instruction and curricula,” they bemoan.
This is nothing more than a federal abuse of power intended to intimidate and threaten parents from confronting radical left-wing school boards. https://t.co/CkH05FSAyj
— Bernard B. Kerik (@BernardKerik) October 5, 2021
RELATED: Ted Cruz Introduces Bill Blocking Federal Funding For Critical Race Theory Training
They’re Trying To Shut Parents Up
Thus far, the ‘domestic terrorism and hate crimes’ threats appear to be little more than sparsely occurring verbal confrontations at school board meetings across the country, or the extremely rare physical altercation.
An online search of physical incidents appears to be few and far between, not a ‘disturbing trend’ as Garland and the school board group contends.
That said, last week, a skirmish broke out at a school board meeting in Minnesota between two men over a mask mandate.
A Daily Beast article cites one individual who said people at school board meetings throughout the state are “just being rude and mean, and just sharing negativity.”
No word on whether or not the FBI will define “being rude and mean” as an act of ‘domestic terrorism.’
Nicole Neily, president of Parents Defending Education told the Daily Caller News Foundation that, “It is shameful that activists are weaponizing the US Department of Justice against parents.”
Garland calls in FBI to counter reported threats against school staffers https://t.co/P83ViVTOj0 pic.twitter.com/k1V5d7NTgx
— New York Post (@nypost) October 5, 2021
“This is a coordinated attempt to intimidate dissenting voices in the debates surrounding America’s underperforming K-12 education – and it will not succeed,” Neily added. “We will not be silenced.”
It truly says something about Garland and the Biden White House that with an ongoing surge of illegal immigrants coming over the border, Afghan refugees walking off military bases, and the largest rise in murder rates across the country since record-keeping began, that the main focus right now is angry parents who don’t want their kids masked and brainwashed into learning CRT.
Parents are enemy number one in the Biden White House right now.
Now is the time to support and share the sources you trust.
The Political Insider ranks #15 on Feedspot’s “Top 70 Conservative Political Blogs, Websites & Influencers in 2021.”
