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The School Committee has doubled down on its commitment to students and staff by officially adopting a statement on hate, harassment and human dignity.
“It is my view that it’s important for us, as community leaders in Winchester, to stand up and reject these efforts to intimidate our students and our educators. They are the gems of what we do here,” said School Committee Chair Tim Matthews, during the committee’s Oct. 5 meeting.
The vote came on the heels of a tumultuous few days that took place after a McCall Middle School parent allegedly shared photos of a 6-year-old banner with “Libs of TikTok.”
The artwork, conceived of and created by then middle school students, is a whimsical take on identifying LGBTQIA+ identities and was meant to honor friends and family members whose identities have been historically marginalized.
Libs TikTok is a national social media account known for disinformation campaigns and a staunch nonacceptance of all forms of LGBTQ+ identities, particularly in schools. They also appear to enjoy mocking and deriding people in LGBTQ+ community and left-wing camp.
There were also posts on another conservative social media site, Massachusetts Informed Parents, regarding the banner. Posts also included at least one teacher’s name, and called out the middle school principal by name and image for allowing the banner to be hung in the school library.
Matthews said that one post included the telephone number for Winchester Schools, which led to a number of phone calls left on voice mail, some rising to the level of being passed on to Winchester Police Department.
The statements
The Winchester Select Board adopted a Human Rights Statement in 2009 and updated it in May 2020. The short statement states that:
“Winchester is a community that is grounded in respect for every individual, and therefore
protects all residents, employees, business owners, students and visitors in the enjoyment and exercise of human and civil rights. It is Town policy to ensure equal treatment and opportunity to all individuals regardless of race, gender, gender identity, ethnicity, religion, ideology, socio-economic status, health, sexual orientation, age, military status, disability, country of origin or immigration status.”
Matthews called the statement a guide for the town’s common life together, but said he wasn’t sure if the School Committee ever officially adopted it, which led him to create a statement of “entirely my work” for the committee to consider adopting as its official position on hate, harassment and human dignity.
In his statement, Matthews outlined the social media incidents and noted that other nearby communities, Belmont and Lexington, also had troubling events.
“In that case, it was graffiti, both anti-Semitic as well as racist graffiti, scrolled in student bathrooms,” he said.
The idea, he continued, is that the committee would want to do everything it could to protect students and staff and make it clear that manufactured outrage and non-Winchester pressure groups would not weaken their resolve in that goal.
Winchester is also in the midst of establishing its first ever Human Rights Commission and Matthews said he hoped the commission, coupled with the state’s PROTECT Act and other school policies, would “very much underscore for the community that we are here to protect students, and we stand together.”
According to Gov. Maura Healy, the PROTECT Act “is about keeping our communities safe, protecting people’s rights and preserving the trust that allows people to seek care, report crimes and access the services they rely on.”
Committee member John Bellaire said he appreciated Matthews taking the lead on the issue as well as how the district leadership responded to the incidents.
“I’m glad that we’re standing up for it and defending it when folks are challenging the value system that we have for our district,” he said.
Tom Hopcroft said he was sad they were in the situation they were in, but that he also believed it’s often a small number of people with large megaphones who create such problems. He was also supportive of the statement.
Superintendent Dr. Frank Hackett said the resounding support from the community has been positive and his goal is to make sure no student or staffer feels they did anything wrong or are being judged.
“The voicemails that I had to listen to, none of them were from any of our parents,” he said. “None of them were from Massachusetts, in fact. I think it’s a very important point to make.”
Hackett said he could say with a high degree of confidence that he doesn’t believe anyone in Winchester would want to see anybody hurt or disrespected or not cared for or feel as if they don’t belong.
“And that’s our job to make sure that is clear, that our kids feel that way” he said before thanking administrators and the Winchester Police Department for their help with the situation.
Committee member Karen Maruyama Bolognese also thanked administrators and staff.
“I think it’s tactfully but firmly well said, well written, and I appreciate that it’s inclusive of our students and our staff,” she said. “Thank you so much. I think it’s important.”
Across town
A few hours after the School Committee took its vote, approving the statement unanimously, the Select Board also voted to support the School Committee’s statement. Members also had some questions.
Board member Michelle Prior asked about the level of police involvement, threats to educators and simply more detail on the incident.
“What is the public safety, what are the town resources, what is the support the town needs to offer?” she asked. “I don’t have any of those facts.”
Board member Bill McGonigle pointed out the board was only being asked to show a united front with the School Committee and he didn’t need more information to say the online behavior was wrong. He also said he believed delaying support even a minute longer would be a disservice to the community.
Select Board Chair Anthea Brady suggested they could support the statement and also ask Town Manager Chris Senior to contact Hackett for an update and offer whatever resources were needed.
Senior said he and Hackett have a hotline to each other and have spoken on the issue briefly. He also said resources are always available to the schools and there has been nothing less than full support.
Chris Stevens is an award-winning journalist who has spent 25 years chasing, editing and photographing stories on the North Shore. She is the co-founder and managing editor of Gotta Know Medford.
