Tiverton School Committee members speak out against hateful anti-trans rhetoric
Tiverton School Committee members speak out against hateful anti-trans rhetoric
“In my time in Tiverton, [our] Schools have always been safe and inclusive. As long as I'm here... in this town, I will always fight if I must to preserve that tradition."
For several months, Westerly resident Robert Chiaradio has been touring Rhode Island on a quest to address every school committee and school board in the State and urge them to abandon policies that protect transgender, gender-diverse, and transitioning students. Over time, Chiaradio has received a positive response from a few school committees, most notably in his hometown of Westerly, where an effort is underway to rewrite the policy and remove some protections. But for the most part, his message of right-wing Christian bigotry has been met with strong opposition.
Occasionally, a school committee member will denounce Chiaradio, as happened in Pawtucket when School Committee member Jennifer Carney, the mother of a trans child, called out the blatant hate speech. [See: On Thursday, anti-trans bigotry went to Pawtucket to die] But at Wednesday evening’s Tiverton School Committee meeting, the four committee members were unequivocal in their rejection of Chiaradio’s bigoted messaging. Sadly, Chiaradio was not there to listen. He was long gone by the time those in opposition to his message spoke.
You can watch the testimony here:
“We typically would not [make] any kind of response to an open forum item, but I want to make one very quick statement,” said Tiverton School Committee Chair Diane Farnworth. “In my time in Tiverton, which is quite a while, Tiverton Schools have always been safe and inclusive. As long as I’m here, as long as I am still in this town, I will always fight if I must to preserve that tradition.”
“I believe that our administration, teachers, staff, and faculty make this a great school system to be part of,’ “said Committee Member Michael DeCotis. “Everyone should feel included, involved, and cared for. As a school committee member, I would echo [the Chair’s] statement.”
“It’s my last night, but as a citizen... I agree with you both, Diane and Mike; I categorically reject the statements of the second speaker,” said Committee Member Jerome Larkin.
“I want to thank everyone who came and spoke tonight, even the one we disagreed with. One of the things I’ll always defend is your right to be heard,” said Committee Member Deborah Pallasch. “That being said, having been in the District raising my child, [and with] 15 years on the school board, we are accepting and inclusive in this District, and I see no reason to stop doing that now.”
It was as thorough a rejection of Chiaradio’s bigoted ideology as has been made at any of the dozens of school committees visited by him and his small group of zealots eager to rescind a policy that has protected all students in Rhode Island, trans and cis, for around seven years.
I won’t be transcribing bigotry—I’ve done that enough in the dozen-plus articles I’ve published over the last two years. But I will transcribe the words of those who stepped up to defend children from hate.
“Oh darn, he left,” said Tiverton resident Gloria Crist as she took the microphone. “And I brought a copy of the Title IX Guidance just in case someone hasn’t read it. I live in Tiverton, and I am here to talk about the fear of the gentleman who was clearly so afraid that he left the room. When we talk about book banning and discriminating against transgender and LGBTQ students, it’s essential to provide a well-rounded rebuttal. We talk about freedom of expression and thought. Banning books that feature LGBTQ+ characters or themes compromises educational integrity. It also impedes First Amendment rights.
“All children deserve to be seen and heard. It is their civil right. Freedom of speech and expression is a core American value. It’s protected under the First Amendment. How ironic that we have a group of people who [express] their hate and intolerance because they’re afraid and they want their First Amendment rights met, but they want to take them away from everyone else.
“I want to talk about the impact on mental health and wellbeing - the mental health risks. Discriminatory policies and practices against transgender and LGBTQ+ students contribute to higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide within these communities. When we have individuals that are promoting hate and intolerance, those rates go up, and the risks go up. Safe and inclusive schooling is the rule.
“All students deserve a safe and supportive learning environment. It has been proven that educational outcomes and equity are greatly impacted when you have inclusive policies and curricula that affirm LGBTQ+ identities. They’re linked to better educational outcomes. When students feel safe and accepted, they’re more likely to succeed academically. They will attend school and engage positively with their peers. We talked about civil rights and ethical responsibilities.
“LGBTQ+ bullying prevalence. Right now, 75.4% of LGBTQ+ students in grades six through 12 reported experiencing verbal harassment, threats because of their sexual orientation, physical harassment, and cyberbullying. Had the gentleman not left the room, I would’ve said to him that he is irrelevant, and it’s more terrifying that he has become obsessed with adolescents’ gender, genitalia, and sexual preference.”
“I want to talk about how, when you get yourself down a social media rabbit hole, you end up where our second speaker was,” said Tiverton resident Shannon McNamara. “AI can contribute to this and et cetera, et cetera. You can see what this thinking does once you start watching this vitriol. It’s fed to you over and over again until you’re obese with ignorance and hate. Then, an already marginalized group of children becomes the boogeyman of this week’s Facebook algorithm.
“Instead of explaining the science of this, I’ll say this:
“It’s okay to be different. So what if you get labeled weird? The weird kids become the artists, musicians, designers, and engineers. The bullies become the leaders of their narrow-minded agenda because they refuse to see the beauty in those who are different. Know that you have many parents, so many who are here tonight who will stand beside you and in front of you when some want to bulldoze you over. School and youth are fleeting. Put your headphones on or your AirPods in and drown out the madness. You’ll be better off, and we will be better off because we have you here with us. That’s it.”
“My pronouns are she they. I’m from Providence, Rhode Island,” said Aubrey Planets. “I want to tell you why I use she/they pronouns. While I often present as extremely feminine, I don’t believe in being confined to society’s definitions of normal for any gender. My pronouns reflect my belief that identity is personal and fluid, and I’m grateful for the spaces and the people who respect them.
“This wasn’t always the case when I was a child. Public schools must represent and protect the diversity of their students. Every student, regardless of gender identity, deserves to feel safe, respected and included.
“When I hear people say, ‘boys are boys and girls are girls, and that’s just how it is,’ it’s an oversimplification of a complex issue. Gender norms, as we all know, are a social construct, and that is just a social construct and a truth, as I’ve heard the gentleman say. Our job is to protect children whether they want to wear dresses or play baseball or basketball or, in my case, both those sports when a girls’ team didn’t exist. It is our job to protect those students. If they want to wear pink or go by, she, they, them, or he. It is not our job to tell little girls or boys what they cannot be. Our job as an education system and as adults is to protect them, encourage them, answer their questions respectfully, and encourage them to do the same with those around them.
“If we allow our students to hear this nonsense, they’re only going to inflict that on their current and fellow students. I hope that we, as adults, can protect these kids and encourage them to be good people to one another and also be good people to them. We owe this to them. You owe this to so many kids - to protect them as parents. You owe that. I don’t have kids. I would love to have kids. It’s much harder for me and my partner, and I want to know that when they go to school, they are safe and that the people respect us as parents and who we are. [When] you get rid of a policy, as some people would like, it does not erase people. They will always be there whether there’s a policy or not, and that policy doesn’t have to be in place for you to be good people.”
Woonsocket resident Jojo Clark has been indefatigable in traveling to school committee meetings across the State to stand up for trans rights.
“I’m here tonight to voice my support and encourage this board to follow Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) ’s guidelines for transgender and gender-diverse students in your school system,” said Clark. “At heart, the policy simply extends all students’ protection and safety set. It mirrors our society’s endeavor to fight discrimination, prejudice, and bigotry. I can think of no better place to start.
“I am 59 years of age. I conduct my life according to my experience, heart, and reasoning. It is by those tenants I choose to stand before you and testify. I am trans and not evil, nor do I belong to a cult. My transition has resulted in a much richer life mentally, creatively, and socially. Some here would care for you to start a witch hunt where no witches can be found. Though I do not know them well enough to speak of the void of heart, I can clearly hear misdirected fear, condemnation, and persecution aimed at the innocent, which this board is charged with the protection and safety of. And for what reason are they being targeted? For their right of self-expression. Your due diligence is civically essential here.
“I was raised in the post-segregated South, and I know pretty well how bigotry is preserved - dehumanization, exaggerations, and ignorance reinforced by separation so that experience may never unseat the narrative. This fire is being fanned for preserving customs, not for caring for students today and those to come. The smoke of conspiracies and interpreted facts or interpreted statistics you will likely hear tonight are too vast for me to address one by one. They can only be cleared by reasoning and vetted research, which the State’s diligence has consciencely done with the RIDE guidelines, additionally adhering to Title IX of the United States Education Amendment.
“No good path forward in the history of time has ever been resolved by discrimination and isolation. I am hopeful that you choose to acknowledge the rights, protections, and existence of all students, support expression and teach the existing diversity of our world uncensored, and allow teachers their trained profession without being forced to become adjunct policing for parents. By following RIDE’s guidelines for transgender and gender-diverse students, you will lay the groundwork for healthier students and how they see themselves and treat their peers. Remain within the law of this land and perhaps encourage a more empathetic and understanding society for our future. It’s your clarity and mission with heart, not fear, I am here to call upon.”
The first person to speak was Susan Razza from Newport. I am placing her last because, as she said at the beginning of her testimony, she usually testifies after everyone else.
“I was a student here 50-odd years ago. I’m also a representative from The Womxn Project,” said Razza. “I will not need my whole three minutes.
“BS is easy to spot. You can see the fill line in the eyes.
“Blow that dog whistle. Hear it clear. The ignorance patrol is here.
“Blow that dog whistle. Say the words that tickle the spine and rally the herd.
“Blow that dog whistle. Tell all the lies but keep them straight, tee hee, for when the time comes for the pearly gates.
“Blow that dog whistle. Say, ‘God told me to.’ Say it proudly, but give me a clue.
“Blow that dog whistle. Show me the Bible verse where Jesus said, “I’d rather be straight, not gay, trans, or dead.”
“Blow that dog whistle. Tell them what you want them to know or feel. To Hell with what the child wants or needs.
“So blow that dog whistle. Try to ban books. Demonize the different and foreign - for knowledge is power, and that scares the crap out of the Christian right, GQP, Heritage Foundation, Koch Brothers, et cetera - Moms for Liberty, too, I guess.
“Spew your filth, but take to heart [that] we know who and what you are. We see that your eyes are full. You all be yourselves. Goodnight.”