RUSD must condemn attack against Alex Vara

President Patty Holohan and Redlands Unified Board Members

We are disappointed at Redlands Unified leadership’s silence after the horrific threat publicly made against Board Member Alex Vara on the 9/14 board meeting:


The unruly anti-masker crowd then proceeded to intimidate the board after the meeting was adjourned earlier due to the chaos that ensued:

On 9/21, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), a widely respected Hispanic civil rights organization in the US with 135,000 members, sent a letter in support of Board Member Alex Vara. (full letter) LULAC’s involvement shows the seriousness of this attack to our community.

Anti-maskers are clearly targeting Alex Vara because of his ethnicity, and for his support of Resolution 12, declaring racism as a public health crisis. Anti-maskers are racists because their main goal is not mask “freedom”, but actually the end of Ethnic Studies classes (which they incorrectly refer as “Critical Race Theory”), anti-LGBTQ+, and anti-science teaching -- As shared by the anti-maskers themselves on 8/10:


We demand RUSD to publicly condemn the attack against Alex Vara and all forms of threats that have gone unchecked at these meetings.

Sponsored by
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Safe Redlands Schools
Redlands, CA

To: President Patty Holohan and Redlands Unified Board Members
From: [Your Name]

In the last board meeting on 9/14/2021, Jared Gustafson abused the public participation portion of the meeting to publicly expose the home address of school board member Alex Vara. This act is known as “doxxing”. Doxxing [1] is an insidious form of intimidation intended to force the victim to act according to the doxxer's wishes out of fear of physical harm to oneself or family.

This goes beyond bullying, as it can lead to violent [2], even deadly consequences for the victim [3], especially when the victim belongs to a minority group. Given the multiple verbal threats caught on video by Jared and his group of supporters [a] [b] [c] [d], this incident cannot be minimized, or go unacknowledged. The parents of the children attending Redlands schools, and the community at large are seeking public comment on the events that took place at the Sept 14th School Board Meeting. Additionally, we urge this body to publicly condemn any and all forms of threats, public doxxing, and other forms of intimidation tactics that have gone unchecked at these meetings.

We hope to see our elected members meet this moment with the courage to follow through with the mission of the RUSD of empowering our students with the knowledge and commitment necessary to confront the challenges of our changing world, by leading by example as the current leaders of the 21st century

-- The parents and guardians at Safe School Redlands

Quotes:

[a] “I’m letting you know if you move this platform to a virtual environment, we are prepared to go to [RUSD Board Member Alex Vara’s home address redacted]. Mr Vara, I am sure you’re familiar with that address, and to many other addresses, in order to make our point very cristally [sic] clear, because you made this personal to our children in our community. It’s time for us to make this equally personal. To anyone that does not stand on the rights of a sovereign individual.”
-- RUSD Board Meeting 9/14/2021, http://tiny.cc/rusd-threat

[b] “We’ll see you at your homes! The brute squad, motherfuckers, the brute squad.”
-- RUSD Board Meeting, 9/14/2021, http://tiny.cc/rusd-threat2 , at 1m40sec

[c] [While speaking about the RUSD Board Meeting] “Whether you like it or not, it’s time of warfare. These are people in power, and they are coming after your liberty”
-- Instagram post, around July/August 2021, http://tiny.cc/rusd-warfare

[d] “And hear this: If any punitive measures come against any student or parent, we as a coalition, in collaboration with this community, are prepared to come for you.”
-- RUSD Board Meeting, 8/10/2021, http://tiny.cc/rusd-coming4u

Citations:

[1] “New York Man Sentenced To 24 Months in Prison For Internet Offenses, Including "Doxing," "Swatting," Making a False Bomb Threat, and Cyber-Stalking”, The United States Department of Justice, 07/11/2016, http://tiny.cc/c6djuz

[2] “Doxxing, assault, death threats”, The Guardian, 06/14/2018, http://tiny.cc/86djuz

[3] “The posters [...] included the names, addresses and photos of four Charlotte, N.C., doctors who perform abortions. [...] The court found that "wanted" posters were not free speech but a "true threat".”
-- “Anti-Abortion Activist On Trial For 'Wanted' Posters”, NPR, 11/8/2010, http://tiny.cc/r5djuz