Two school-board members in Texas have been indicted by a grand jury for discussing how to promote the radical teachings of “critical race theory” in their public schools.
The Texan reported Carroll, Texas, Independent School District board members Michelle Moore and Todd Carlton were indicted for violating state law with their discussion of the theory. According to Britannica, the theory claims “the law and legal institutions in the United States are inherently racist insofar as they function to create and maintain social, economic, and political inequalities between whites and nonwhites, especially African Americans.”
The board members are accused of violating a state law that bans secret deliberations.
“Last summer, several school board members engaged in a series of text messages regarding the district’s Cultural Competence Action Plan (CCAP) that raised concerns about an Open Meetings Act violation,” the report said.
The report explained members of public school boards are not allowed to “engage in communications separately that, when taken together, would constitute a quorum.”
The report cited the Texas Attorney General’s Open Meetings Act Handbook, which states: “Amended section 551.143 now prohibits discussion about an item of public business among a quorum of a governmental body through a series of communications.”
Violating the requirement is a misdemeanor with possible penalties of up to $500 in fines and up to six months in jail.
“I am blown away that two of our school board trustees are now facing criminal charges in Tarrant County for conspiring to circumvent the process and hold a secret meeting,” CISD parent Bonnie Pendergrass told The Texan. “The fact that they were arrested, posted bond, and had the nerve to show up to our school board meeting that evening is appalling.”
The arrests have resulted in calls for their resignations.
The Texan reported a civil lawsuit has also been filed against the board for violating the Open Meetings Act. And a temporary restraining order is in place forbidding further consideration of the district’s Cultural Competence Action Plan.
The Texan reported: “CCAP is touted as a plan to address racial issues and was proposed by the District Diversity Council. It has come under criticism from members of the community as having a political agenda that could infringe on parental rights and punish students who don’t adhere to more progressive ideologies.”
The Daily Wire reported the “racial agenda” that was discussed by the board members was widely opposed by their constituents.
“The board is required to meet in public, but the texts allegedly involved enough school board members that it may have amounted to a secret, unofficial meeting under the law,” the report said.
The Daily Wire said: “In December, a judge separately instituted a restraining order prohibiting the school officials from moving forward with work related to a District Diversity Council, which in August issued a 34-page plan that included a proposal for racial training in schools that would cost $425,000 the first year, including $35,000 for speakers.”
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