[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 210 (Monday, December 6, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8923-S8924]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                         School Board Violence

  Madam President, it was about 2 months ago there was an uproar in the 
Senate Judiciary Committee. Hardly a day would pass, hardly a 
Republican Senator would take the committee dais and speak and not 
raise their mock horror and outrage over a decision by the Department 
of Justice under President Biden to notify school boards and school 
board members and teachers across the United States that we would not 
tolerate violence against them for their public duties.
  Merrick Garland, as Attorney General, volunteered to work with State 
and local law enforcement to make certain that members of the school 
board, teachers, administrators--all of them--would be safe in the 
execution of their duties, and none of them should fear violence.
  You wouldn't have believed the reaction from the Republican side of 
the dais in the Judiciary Committee. They came in and said that this is 
just an effort by the Biden administration to suppress free speech, to 
stop people who show up at school board meetings from expressing 
themselves. Well, we repeated over and over again it wasn't expression 
of speech we were worried about, it was violence and every form of it 
that the Department of Justice was responding to, they wouldn't hear of 
it. They refused to acknowledge the very real reality across the United 
States, and even in our State of Illinois, when it comes to violence 
against school board members.
  The Members of this Senate share something in common. At some point 
in our lives, we heard the call to public service. It may have come in 
the form of a law we wanted to change or a passion for serving our 
communities back home. But for some, the greatest call to public 
service is to help children, the desire to do what you can, inch by 
inch, day by day, to leave a better world for the kids.
  That is one of the reasons that Carolyn Waibel, a mother from my home 
State of Illinois, decided to put her name on the ballot to run in a 
local school board election. She wanted to serve her community and 
advocate for the safety and well-being of every child in St. Charles, 
IL, a suburb near Chicago. Sadly, Carolyn Waibel's career as a public 
servant was cut short. And it is not because she had any change of 
heart. It was because she feared for her family's safety.
  Trouble began last summer. Carolyn started receiving threatening 
emails because of her views on mask requirements and in-person 
learning. At first, she brushed them off and said she would ignore 
them. She figured harsh feedback was just part of being a public 
servant. But then she started receiving messages that read: ``Your days 
are numbered.''
  This mother, school board member--a non-paying job--was having her 
life threatened.
  Then she started to receive other messages, and other events 
occurred. Soon enough, her personal information was spread out online, 
and her home became a target. Carolyn started discovering dead rodents 
thrown in her driveway. At one point, a trespasser cut the wires on the 
air-conditioning unit to her home.
  Then came the final straw: Carolyn actually heard someone sneak onto 
her property, cut the cord to her refrigerator, and open the door to 
her laundry room.
  Following months of harassment, Carolyn resigned from her district's 
school board in October. In explaining her decision to one news outlet, 
she said: ``I had to put the safety of myself and [my] family first.''
  She said: Even though I have resigned, I am still receiving threats.
  Carolyn is far from the only school official who has feared for her 
safety in

[[Page S8924]]

recent months. I commend her situation to my Republican colleagues who 
were so critical of the Attorney General for even raising the 
possibility of violence against school board members.
  All throughout the country, school board members, teachers, and other 
officials have reported harassment, intimidation, and even assaults.
  In Pennsylvania, one school board president received a deluge of 
threatening emails, voice mails, and social media posts because of the 
district's COVID policies. Some of the messages threatened her life, 
while others threatened to share her personal information with the 
world.
  Down in Florida, a school board member received death threats because 
she chaperoned a parent-approved field trip to an LGBTQ-friendly 
restaurant. She received threatening letters and phone calls from all 
over the United States.
  In Ohio, a school board member received a letter that read: ``We're 
coming after you.''
  After she shared the letter online, a public school official in a 
neighboring district said the members of his board had received similar 
threats.
  The list goes on and on. Just type ``school board violence'' into 
your favorite search engine and look for yourself.
  These threats against school officials are widespread and serious. A 
recent report from EdWeek Research Center found that 60 percent of the 
principals and district leaders they surveyed said ``someone in their 
district had been verbally or physical threatened in the past year'' 
because of the district's response to COVID-19. One in three of the 
officials surveyed said the school board members, even their nurses, 
had faced similar threats.
  Now, I understand the pandemic has caused great concern and confusion 
for parents, especially parents of young kids. It is a new challenge 
for all of us, and there are no simple or straightforward answers in 
keeping our schools open and safe.
  It is every parent's right to voice their disagreements with the 
members of their school board. And it is only natural that at times, 
emotions may run high, that is part of open debate in a free society. 
But there is a difference--a clear difference--which we should never 
overlook between free speech and threats of violence. We need to be 
unequivocal in drawing that line.
  I salute the Attorney General for making it clear that he was willing 
to stand up and defend those school board members who were subjected to 
harassment, intimidation, and even violence. These people work for no 
pay. Many of them are parents themselves. They are not part of some 
shadowy organization or conspiracy. They are our neighbors. They 
deserve to be safe, just as we all do.
  The unprecedented rise in threats against school board members and 
public school officials should not be taken lightly or politicized. 
There have already been too many instances of officials being 
assaulted. Law enforcement agencies have a responsibility to take these 
reports seriously, and that is exactly what the FBI is doing by 
tracking reports of violence and threats of violence against school 
officials. Keeping track of those incidents and those involved in them 
will save lives. It will enable State and local law enforcement to 
develop tailored strategies to keep communities safe.
  As part of these efforts, Attorney General Garland issued a memo on 
October 4 encouraging Justice Department officials to reach out to 
members of law enforcement to see if we could assist. This outreach is 
an integral part of the Department of Justice's responsibility. I am 
thankful these conversations are underway.
  Instead of condemning violence, some of our Republican colleagues 
have been railing against the Justice Department for even suggesting 
there is a possibility. Why? Do they believe these incidents of 
violence and threats are acceptable, that they shouldn't be taken 
seriously? I don't believe that.
  During the pandemic, there has been a troubling and growing trend of 
violent behavior in all spheres of public life. Everyone from flight 
attendants to election workers and--yes--school board officials has 
been harassed and assaulted.
  More than four in five flight attendants report they have had to deal 
with an unruly passenger during the first half of the year. As a 
frequent passenger on airlines, I have heard the announcements they 
make to try to let people know how serious this issue is and that it is 
going to be taken seriously.
  In a moment of danger, these workers and public servants are 
vulnerable. That is why the Department of Justice has to do its job.
  Here in the Senate, we should be united as well in saying violence 
and the threat of violence have no place in public life, whether in a 
Federal building, on an airplane, or in a school board meeting in St. 
Charles, IL. When parents like Carolyn Waibel are harassed to the point 
of fearing for their family's safety, we need to at least have the 
common sense and common courage to speak up. We need to support members 
of law enforcement who are doing everything they can to protect all of 
our families. Among our many freedoms as Americans is the freedom to 
live without fear. Let's defend that right together.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kansas.