The Biden administration has tried to insert itself into a Virginia school district with a policy of informing parents of their child’s gender identity and use of related pronouns.
The Daily Wire reported Congressmen Ben Cline (R-VA) and Morgan Griffith (R-VA), “wrote to the Roanoke Country school board after they learned through a report from The Daily Wire on the DOJ’s attempt to step into the local political matter using its Community Relations Service (CRS).”
“The DOJ said it had the ability to step in as mediator due to “ongoing community tensions in Roanoke following the release of the new model policies for transgender students” — a reference to two leftist activists who were arrested for protesting a meeting over whether to implement the policy,” according to The Daily Wire.
Roanoke County, the district in question, had already rejected the offer.
“We have rejected the offer from CRS and agree that it would not be in the best interest of our community to allow them here in Roanoke County,” school board chair Brent Hudson told the congressmen.
“Whether it’s targeting concerned parents in Loudoun County or seeking to intervene as ‘mediator’ in Roanoke County School Board deliberations, the Biden DOJ has no right to try to insert itself into important issues facing parents and students,” Cline told The Daily Wire. “I applaud the Roanoke County School Board for rejecting the agency’s politicized attempt to overstep its authority and ensuring that the elected board members are the ones making the decisions.”
This incident is similar to the recent report by More To The Story of government officials in California suing their own school districts over similar parental notification policies.
More To The Story
Just what is the DOJ’s Community Relations Service (CRS) and what is it doing in the nation’s school districts?
Under the CRS’ "Our Focus" section, it says the organization “works with community groups to resolve community conflicts and prevent and respond to alleged hate crimes arising from differences of race, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, or disability.”
Additionally, the website states “CRS was established by Title X of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its mandate was expanded by the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009.”
According to the CRS “fact sheet,” CRS serves as “America’s Peacemaker” by “facilitating understanding and improving communication in communities facing conflict, and developing communities’ ability to independently prevent and resolve future conflicts."
CRS also operates a program called “School SPIRIT,” aimed at engaging “student leaders, school administrators and other school community members in identifying issues impacting their school — and developing solutions to resolve them. By challenging prejudices and fostering a culture of respect, these student-led initiatives can also serve as an essential tool to prevent potential hate crimes.”
Training is also provided on a number of topics like bullying, community engagement, and "Engaging and Building Relationships with Transgender Communities.”
The transgender relationships training is “designed to help officers develop relationships and improve their interactions with transgender communities and individuals,” and “The program aims to increase participants’ awareness and understanding of the civil rights-related issues impacting transgender individuals and communities, and provides strategies and best practices for improving communication and collaboration.”
Under the transgender relationships training section are two "case highlights," one of which is in North Carolina.
"Training Law Enforcement to Engage with Transgender Communities | Winston-Salem, North Carolina."
CRS’ website also hosts school resource kits, such as "Preventing and Responding to Bias and Hate Incidents in K-12 Educational Settings.”
As seen above, the documentation for that kit lists activities such as Best Practices for Difficult Conversations, Hosting a “Solidarity Event Against Hate and Bias,” Being Prepared for Possible Unrest, Bias, and Hate Crimes, and more.
Based on CRS’ own activities and resources, it looks and feels like community organizing by a federal agency.
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