An opportunity

Re “Profanity, screaming, threats: Hampton Roads school boards become battleground” (Oct. 9): Once gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe placed his foot in his mouth by stating parents should not be able to tell schools how to educate their children, channeling his friend Hillary Clinton’s dismissal of “deplorables” during the 2016 race, the mainstream media cheering squads have trained their sights on parents.

Re “GOP candidate tests school fight message for 2022” (The Virginia Gazette, Oct. 9): The newspaper printed the Associated Press story investigating Northern Virginia parents who have successfully challenged the education elite and found that (gasp!) some groups have financial ties to Republican entities. If the Associated Press likewise reported on how much support, financially and in-kind, McAuliffe received from teachers and other public sector unions that live off the taxpayer, I must have missed it.

The first article I mentioned above smears activist parents by comparing their actions to Jim Crow-era opponents of school integration.

Yet, I haven’t seen any story raising concerns that the federal government may investigate those who make threats at school board meetings as terrorists, usurping the responsibility of local law enforcement officials.

Parents across Virginia have legitimate grievances against school boards who ignore them on a variety of issues, from the increasingly poor quality of education, to the year of education students lost during the COVID19 pandemic because educators demanded remote learning, to attempts in some counties to radicalize the teaching agenda.

Republicans are smart enough to recognize and seize the opportunity. Democrats ignore it at their peril.

Digby Solomon, former Daily Press publisher, Williamsburg