The newly released report from the Justice Department's Weaponization Working Group reveals that Biden’s DOJ explored different ways to prosecute those who spoke to school boards and school officials during COVID-19.
The report focuses on former U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland’s controversial October 2021 memo, which was sparked by a National School Boards Association letter comparing protesting parents to domestic terrorists.
AFN previously reported how irate parents were filling school board meetings through much of 2021 to complain about mask-wearing and to condemn far-left ideology being uncovered in the classroom.
That simmering conflict blew up in the fall of 2021 after the National School Boards Association asked the Dept. of Justice to investigate threats and violence against school board members. The letter called unruly parents a “form of domestic terrorism" and suggested the Patriot Act could be used to crack down on the public.
In the memo, Garland concluded that there was a “spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence” without any hard evidence of actual violence or threats, according to the DOJ report.
There was internal pushback within the DOJ by some who called the directive “political” and “dangerous,” but Garland's memo led to FBI “Guardian assessments” on parents.
Playing both sides on Capitol Hill, Garland told Republican lawmakers he was blindsided by the request even though he ordered the DOJ to form a task force.
AFN has also reported Garland's weaponized DOJ was uncovered by a grassroots group of frustrated parents, Parents Defending Education. Using a freedom of information request, the group obtained emails showing the White House had worked closely with the school board association for weeks on the letter before it arrived at the White House.
The DOJ referred to Garland’s memo as a weaponization of government power, which President Donald Trump signed an executive order to stop across federal agencies.
Reactions from grassroots leaders, such as Tina Descovich, co-founder of Moms for Liberty, were swift.
“Vindication is what I would say that I felt and many of our Moms for Liberty members across the country who've been sounding the alarm. The government was weaponized against ordinary moms and dads, and people were not listening,” Descovich states.
The fallout was terrifying for families, she said, noting parents were questioned about household weapons after speaking at local meetings.
Public schools 'shaping agenda' for future
Now, with the Trump DOJ clearing parental rights and offering file reviews and potential apologies, Descovich encourages all parents to return to school board meetings.
“Even if you don’t have children in public school, school board districts and school districts carry a good portion of your tax money, and they are shaping the agenda for our children and the future of our country,” Descovich states.
Her organization is celebrating this turning point live this week in Dallas, Texas, hosting their fifth annual national summit with thousands of grassroots leaders and high-profile speakers.
