But she said she's glad the NSBA letter backfired. Ron DeSantis, a potential 2024 GOP presidential contender, said in a statement, "We don't need the federal government investigating and intimidating parents in an attempt to squelch dissent." The Florida School Boards Association withheld their dues in July over various concerns with NSBA and stated in an October 11 letter that they would continue to do so.įormer President Donald Trump weighed in on the issue, too, with Fox News' Sean Hannity, saying parents don't want "all of this nonsense that's being fed to their children," and "they're trying to make them out to be terrorists … How crazy is this?"Įrika Sanzi, outreach director for Parents Defending Education, told Insider her group had "major concerns" about what seemed like a deliberate attempt to intimidate parents and the DOJ's quick response, giving NSBA what they wanted. "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 letter from the group's president Viola Garcia and Chip Slaven, who was then the interim executive director.įlorida Gov. The advocacy group did not characterize parents in the letter as "domestic terrorists," as has been reported, but they asked for federal assistance against threats, and requested a review examining enforceable actions under a host of federal statutes, including the post-9/11 PATRIOT Act in regards to domestic terrorism. Later, in their September 29 letter to Biden, NSBA said school boards members have been attacked for face-mask policies and threatened over false claims about "critical race theory" being taught in K-12 classrooms. As wild parent protests at school board meetings grabbed headlines, the group and AASA, the School Superintendents Association raised alarms about threats and violence around COVID-19 guidelines at the beginning of the school year. The NSBA is a nonprofit that has operated since 1940 as a federation of state associations (and the US Virgin Islands), advocating for public school board leaders. "We want parents and patrons engaged in our public schools – we have sought that for years," the Idaho group added. "We would have readily pointed out the mischaracterization of parents and patrons in our communities as domestic terrorists who merited federal investigation," the Idaho School Boards Association wrote in its response, which said they had not been asked for input on the letter. Seventeen of those states have taken further steps, by either withdrawing membership, participation, or dues, according to the latest tracking by Parents Defending Education, an organization that says it fights "indoctrination" in the classroom. In all, associations in 27 states have distanced themselves from NSBA since that late September letter to Biden. "Unfortunately, the NSBA needlessly caused substantial controversy this fall, which has negatively impacted relationships among school boards, parents and community members," wrote The Wisconsin Association of School Boards, which voted in November to withdraw participation in the NSBA programs and activities.
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