In a 4-3 vote Tuesday night, the Lakeville school board voted to remove a series of posters — which included “Black Lives Matter” slogans — from district buildings.
In a lawsuit filed more than two years ago, a group of residents, parents and students alleged their First Amendment rights were violated when the school district allowed posters featuring “Black Lives Matter” to be placed in classrooms, while not permitting the display of posters that read “All Lives Matter” or “Blue Lives Matter.”
The posters are part of a series of “inclusive” posters ordered by the district in 2021, two of which said “Black Lives Matter,” and were distributed to staff members when requested.
In June, a federal appeals panel reversed a lower court’s dismissal of the case against the district.
Feedback from students, parents and teachers
Students, teachers and parents spoke at Tuesday’s meeting for and against removing the posters. The school board received more than 300 emails on the topic, with most in favor of keeping the posters, according to board members.
While most of those who spoke publicly were in favor of keeping the posters, board members — none of whom were on the board at the time the posters were ordered by the district — debated several amendments to the decision, including to table it.
As part of its decision, the board amended to replace the eight posters with a theme of academic excellence or other variations.
‘Divisiveness’
Board members who spoke in favor of removal attributed the decision to wanting to move away from divisiveness; focus on other district concerns, including academics; and protect the district from litigation.
“Our schools do not have to be the battleground for every hot political and social issue, and those two are becoming more and more synonymous in our divisive culture. We have a big enough task as a school district in educating our youth, and we cannot be distracted from our primary focus of improving educational outcomes by exposing our district to further legal battles,” said board member Matt Swanson.
Interim Superintendent Michael Baumann had previously informed families that Black Lives Matter posters violate the district’s policy against political endorsements, according to the lawsuit, before the series was ordered by the district. Baumann said he appreciated the feedback.
“And I think then we take the time to refine and define displays and policy and if we want to introduce a new series, that it’s done by stakeholders and that we put our faith in our students and our teachers and our families to help us with that process. We’re a community,” Baumann said.
Board member Brett Nicholson questioned how the district would move forward, saying the topic has divided the community.
“I just want to say, I don’t like this. I don’t like the divide. I think we’re all better than this. All of us. And I think a lot of this is driven from adults. This isn’t the kids at all, the kids didn’t do it,” Nicholson said.
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