Rokita, other AGs ask Biden to ‘dial down rhetoric’ on dissent at school board meetings
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Indiana’s Todd Rokita and 16 other state attorneys general have sent a letter to President Joe Biden and the U.S. attorney general asking them to stop efforts “to chill lawful dissent by parents voiced during local school board meetings by characterizing them as unlawful and threatening.”
Indiana has not been immune to parents interrupting school board meetings, including disruptions at meetings in the New Albany and Zionsville districts. Carmel Clay School Board decided this month to make its meetings virtual after “deliberately orchestrated multiple disruptions.”
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Oct. 4 sent a letter that called on the FBI and other federal law enforcement agencies to convene meetings within 30 days to discuss strategies for discussing threats against school administrators, board members, teachers and staff.
Rokita said in a news release on Monday, “Concerned parents passionate about their kids’ education are not terrorists.” He called on Biden and special-interest allies to “dial down the rhetoric.”