Anti-Gender Queer Groups: A Memoir reportedly harassed parents and teachers who expressed support for the book, which currently only exists in the school library.
BUXTON, Maine — Kate McDonald has two children, both of whom attend Bonny Eagle High School. She was active in last year’s school board elections and was outspoken amid recent debates surrounding books that explain gender identity and sexuality.
McDonald’s supports the preservation of books such as “Gender Queer” and “It’s Perfectly Normal” in school libraries. She even started a petition to rally support around the books.
She also called for support and people to get out ahead of Monday’s next school board meeting, where the board will vote on whether to ban “Gender Queer” from the library.
There is currently only one copy of “Gender Queer” in high school. “It’s perfectly normal” has already been voted on by the board in a positive light, with them voting to keep it in the libraries.
But after starting her petition, McDonald told NEWS CENTER Maine that she received several messages against her efforts.
“They released information about who I am. They accused me of using puppet accounts, telling people who I am and who I am,” McDonald said.
McDonald said since the online attacks she has been worried about her children’s safety and has locked her doors at home more often when she is inside.
“My high school has never had a year without fear of potential gun violence, and now we have to worry about people coming in to see teachers and staff. It’s awful,” McDonald said.
The group that called Kate’s petition is Education Revolution, a Facebook page formerly used by two MSAD 6 school board candidates: Vickie Shane and Eric Bleiken.
After the two lost their elections in June, the group was renamed Education Revolution and focused on posting Gender Queer photos.
Vickie Shane is listed as the page’s moderator. She told the NEWS CENTER Maine by phone that posting McDonald’s profile information didn’t violate any law, but she doesn’t want people to attack her in the posts.
“It makes me sad if that’s really the case, and I would say if anyone is on my page, if you do that, you’re wrong. We need to address this in a civil case,” Shane said.
Ashley Kuntz has three elementary school children in the district and said her husband received threats to his job and reputation on Facebook after a Facebook post from Shane’s group.
“There are accusations of pedophilia on Facebook. Teachers have been encouraged to change their names and hide their identities on social media. We fear this will escalate in the future,” Kuntz said in an email. .
But it’s not just parents who said they were targeted in the messages and emails. The MSAD 6 teachers’ union said it is aware of several teachers receiving harassing messages.
“Some are working to drive a wedge between parents and educators by pushing an extreme political agenda that has no place in our public schools,” union president Dawna Cyr said in a statement.
In a September episode of Maine Source of Truth (by podcaster Shawn McBreairty), the podcaster released the names and emails of several MSAD 6 staff members.
“If you want to contact her,” he added before giving a teacher’s email address.
McBreairty’s episode was over an hour long and spent the first segment criticizing teachers’ opinions at an MSAD 6 school board meeting.
This isn’t the first time he’s given his opinion on a school district case.
At RSU 22, the district ended up awarding the conservative podcaster $40,000 for violating his First Amendment rights. He was first kicked out of a school board meeting for playing a recording that detailed “inappropriate language”.
“This statement is absolutely ridiculous. If anyone is actually targeting their children, they should file a police report,” McBreairty told NEWS CENTER Maine in an email. “It’s no secret. These teachers are paid by We the People, through property, state and federal taxes.”
But for the MSAD 6 school board, the allegations of harassment following McBreairty’s podcast are taken seriously.
“Several MSAD 6 employees are being harassed by a fringe social media page outside of the school district. This behavior is deeply troubling, and the board is fully committed to protecting the safety of everyone in our school community. Many of our teachers are concerned that “They won’t. Be the next victim of this group’s slander, and it’s important for our community to know that the board stands behind each of our dedicated professionals,” Nathan Carlow, the school board’s chairman, told NEWS CENTER Maine in an email.
The school board is expected to vote Monday on whether to keep or remove “Gender Queer” from its high school library.