An alumnus from GCISD who went to school with the board president relates a story of a gay student who was outed and then beaten up in a bathroom, making them afraid to come to school for a year.
"This is why we expose kids to LGBTQ viewpoints, not to indoctrinate them."
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The conservative majority of the GCISD board just voted to suspend the rules and limit all trustee debate on this item to 3 minutes each. They may only speak once.
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GCISD school board trustee Becky St. John tears into the proposal, and is scolded by the conservative board president. Part 1.
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GCISD school board trustee Becky St. John tears into the proposal, and is scolded by the conservative board president. Part 2.
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Hard right GCISD board trustee Tammy Nakamura, who made waves and may have broken district policy by discussing an HR file at a Republican conference, makes her case for the bill. She derides "politicization" in the classroom, later says she supports free market capitalism.
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BREAKING: the GCISD school board in north Texas has officially passed the policies discussed tonight, effectively banning the word "transgender" in the district, among other new restrictions on books. Vote was along the same lines as the vote to limit debate on the policies.
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The debate limits around school policies were also placed on discussion of a policy to amend the election so trustees can win with a plurality, not a majority. One trustee asked about whether the lawyer advised on the limits. The president let time run out, didn't answer.
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Another party line vote in support of the change. Patriot Mobile, their funders and their collaborators have officially taken over this school district.
I'm getting out of here.
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Something trustee St. John mentioned: GCISD hired a firm for legal advice. Same firm gave services to a right wing school board PAC in nearby Keller. Allegedly, theyve also worked for the largest donor to Ford, conservative political operative Aaron Harris who donated $15k
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The law firm in question, Cantey Hanger, features Tim Davis, who happens to be the chief counsel for the Tarrant County GOP. Both GCISD and KISD are in Tarrant County.
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Here's a breakdown from which spells out how Aaron Harris and wealthy hotelier Monty Bennett — who happens to be suing me for libel for an article about his newspaper that is factual — have formed an organization together and spent of money on these races.
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Replying to
Back to Cantey Hanger: excuse me what
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Replying to @stevanzetti
Cantey Hanger is the firm. Fun fact: Founding partner and Texas Senator Bill Hanger was the Grand Cyclops of the Ft. Worth KKK in the early 1900s. I feel like most firms would take his name off the letterhead…
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In summary, my hometown school district which is being advised by a law firm whose cofounder was a Grand Cyclops in the Ft. Worth KKK just banned the word "transgender" after a hard right majority was elected with the help of a wealthy guy who is suing me. Can't make it up.
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One more thing: if you appreciated this reporting, consider chipping in to support it. I am an independent freelance investigative journalist. No outlet paid me to attend the GCISD board meeting. Live tweet threads like this don't pay the bills.
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For those who have asked about an option to make a one time donation to support my work, there are a few options here.
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You remind me of the late great Molly Ivins. 👍 I adored her. When she and the late great Ann Richards got together, they were a formidable force. 😚 Ann was always right about the reds, she still is.....
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