Like many other parents, I was shocked this summer when the U.S. Supreme Court ignored half a century of precedent and overturned the federal right to abortion. This put into stark relief that bodily autonomy is a right we cannot take for granted. I began asking myself whether students who become pregnant might have their right to privacy invaded at public schools. And if a student’s reproductive health can be monitored by law enforcement, what about their gender identity or their sexual orientation? Schools should be a safe place where children can learn and grow and become their best selves with support from the adults around them, not a place where children are targeted and made to feel ashamed of themselves. It should be part of TUSD’s mission to protect our most vulnerable students, not to victimize them.
LGBTQIA+ Students
Around the nation we see school boards targeting transgender students and teachers. We see states banning teaching age appropriate information about sexual orientation and gender identity. Our lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual students deserve better than this. As a district we need to continue protecting our students from harassment, bullying, and discrimination based on their emerging sense of self.
BIPOC Students
The desegregation order has ended, but TUSD remains far from fully integrated. We need to do better. This means properly administering the District Alternative Education Program (DAEP) and improving upon it. This means continuing to build our culturally appropriate studies classes. And it means ensuring that students of all backgrounds feel safe, welcome, and equal in our schools. We must continue to strive for social justice in our schools.
Students Facing Pregnancy
High School and puberty are scary enough without the Arizona Attorney General threatening to incarcerate anyone who participates in an abortion. Our students, teachers, and staff deserve to know that at school, their reproductive health is their own business. Furthermore, in today’s highly charged political environment, it is more important than ever that we promote comprehensive sexual education. Kids need to know the potential consequences of their actions, and how to protect themselves.
Children need to feel supported and to feel safe in order to learn. They need to be fed, whether their families can afford it or not. They need to see themselves and their families in the books that they read, not have those books banned. If elected to the TUSD Board I will fight to protect all of TUSD’s most vulnerable students.
Paid for by the William R. Soland for TUSD Campaign Committee. Authorized by William R. Soland