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My response to a letter to the editor on 7/20/2023 by Maggie Willems, a Mount Vernon teacher. I was alarmed to read a teacher who taught both of my daughters do what she accused Moms for Liberty and other groups of doing, fearmonger by spreading untruths.
I challenge her and others to research these accusations at: https://www.momsforliberty.org/about/. I’m sure heart rates jumped when they read “The Rise of Moms for Liberty” or accusations they use the term ‘parental rights’ as a code for anti-student/inclusion/truth agenda, and limit freedoms.
Then she goes on to say they quote Mao and Hitler but doesn’t explain the context. As a teacher, she knows better. Then she asks for your help to ‘stop this organization’s effort to undermine public education and discredit teachers.’ They do no such thing. As a teacher, she is an example for students and this is not her best moment. I appreciate most of the staff at Mt Vernon. Mt Vernon should not condone teachers spreading disinformation and fear-mongering the community as it is wrong and harmful.
Schools received more money in history during COVID-19 than at any other time. To accept the last 3rd of the Esser3 funds they had to check off items on the district plans such as ‘teach SEL’, and mask children. From COVID came the realization that parents had to be involved in their children’s education. It was no longer optional. Linn-Mar’s gender plans without parental knowledge is the most egregious.
Rachel Cadena
Marion, IA
The letter Cadena writes in response to:
The rise of Moms for Liberty at the national, state and county levels requires attention and information.
The Moms for Liberty organization, self-described “joyful warriors,” is actually an organization that seeks to limit freedoms and to reshape our government and public schools into anti-democratic institutions. This is not merely a group of concerned moms with slightly different hopes for their child’s education. Instead, it is a group that fear-mongers and promotes untruths in order to harm public education and teachers.
When Moms for Liberty uses the term “Parental Rights,” it is code for an anti-student inclusion, anti-Social Emotional Learning and anti-truth agenda in our public schools. This extremist, far-right organization has quoted Mao, Hitler and Stalin at events and on their website. They are associated with The Proud Boys, a white nationalist group, and the Three Percenters, an extremist organization that advocates for armed conflict against the government.
I reach out to our community to ask for your help to stop this organization’s effort to undermine public education, to discredit teachers and to divide communities. One of their overt goals is to take over school boards in order to impose their vision upon school districts. As we head towards school board elections this November in Iowa, it’s important to be vigilant about this organization and its goals here in our community.
Take a look at the letter in the Iowa Standard,appealing to Indianola voters asking them to vote for Rob Keller and Patty Alexander for school board, or the debate in the Indianola Independent Advocate. The ridiculous proposition that Moms for Liberty is extremist ignores the fact that polling data shows that the policy positions of M4L are the positions of the American people.