Two Parental Rights Victories and Freedom of Speech Under Threat by Ignorant Officials

And Special Guest in Old Bridge Faces Subpar Treatment

Good News!

This Month Old Bridge and Vineland both removed Policy 5756 from their district. This is a step in the right direction for parental rights. However, in Old Bridge it was a step in the WRONG direction for Freedom of Speech.

Tensions rose at the Old Bridge BOE meeting when special guest Pastor John Amanchukwu, hailing from North Carolina, stepped up to the podium, facing heckling and jeers from some attendees representing the "tolerant left" of New Jersey. Shockingly, one white meeting attendee bluntly shouted at Pastor Amanchukwu to "Go back to where you came from," without even allowing him to introduce himself. President of the Board of Education preemptively restricted the pastor's speech, stating, "We must maintain a separation between religion and education; please avoid discussing religion here." Completely IGNORING the recommendations from the New Jersey School Boards:

“Under the Open Public Meetings Act, boards are allowed to decide the length of the comment period. Boards should tread carefully, however, in placing further restrictions on speech during the public comment period to avoid violations of the First Amendment right to freedom of speech. The Supreme Court of New Jersey considered the limits on free speech in a 2010 decision.”

The poorly behaved crowd really lost it when Pastor John dropped the N-bomb while attempting to illustrate the mistreatment he was enduring, drawing parallels to the discrimination faced by African Americans in the 1940s, 50s, and 60s. It was laughable to hear white board member, Jen D'Antuono, clutch her pearls and cry that she was “offended” by the Pastor’s speech. She’s only offended because she doesn’t hear her opinion coming out of his mouth.

They cut Pastor John’s mic and sent over the police to intimidate him, which is outrageous and embarrassing. The Board President reversed his decision and permitted the pastor to speak while having his microphone cut off, as he was surrounded by multiple police officers. Meanwhile, members of the panel on stage shouted over him, urging him to "use your time" through their amplified microphone. It was evident that under such chaotic circumstances, it was ridiculous to expect him to complete his speech.

After things settled down and the police withdrew, the Pastor persisted with his speech, without a microphone. However, as soon as he reached the reference to "Jeremiah 13," he was promptly silenced once again. Multiple male voices insisted “We don’t talk about religion here.” Board member Jen D'Antuono began rambling incoherently about the "separation of church and state," demonstrating a clear lack of understanding of the concept. “Separation of church and state” prohibits the government from establishing or promoting religion and ensures that individuals are free to practice their faith without interference from the government. However, this does not mean that religion has no place in public life or at a public meeting.

Two male voices heard on mic state “He is becoming a threat ” and directing the police to “take him out” after they continually shouted over him about what he cannot say. But they can’t control his speech at the meeting. An individual’s right to freedom of speech is derived from the Constitution. A public entity such as a school district lawfully may curtail certain types of speech, such as that which provokes “imminent lawless action,” threats, child pornography, false statements of fact, libel and/or slander, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. U.S. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and other federal and state laws provide certain privacy protections for students.  Absent those specific circumstances, if school board members stop people from speaking or have them removed, the individual can sue the school district for violating their First Amendment rights. Silencing a member of the public, no matter how justified in the minds of school officials, can lead to years of litigation. Robert's Rules of Order allow citizens the opportunity to speak freely in public forums such as school board meetings. The Courts have been very clear in their rulings. The Constitution remains the supreme law of the land.

Even though Old Bridge did eliminate 5756 with a vote 5 to 4 it was overshadowed by outrageous behavior of a minority of the members and the superintendent . Instead of controlling the unruly crowd and getting that under control, some of the board members continued to focus on the speech of Pastor John which is completely inappropriate. The focus should have been on the angry leftists in the audience and they should of been escorted out for not letting the man speak during his time. Unfortunately it was the good Pastor who was escorted out by police after superintendent called for his removal... DURING BLACK HISTORY MONTH. You have to wonder if these people would have done the same thing to MLK.

See the full meeting here.