The Washington Post – whose slogan is "Democracy Dies in Darkness" – mocked parents for requesting public records on what their children are learning on topics relating to gender identity and race Wednesday in a social media post on its TikTok page.
The paper's associate TikTok producer Chris Vazquez said, "Resources are being shifted away from students academic needs at the exact instant America is facing falling test scores, a teen mental health crisis and a teacher shortage. And because of how much time and money is needed to process these requests, they're changing what schools are spending their funding on."
He then proceeded to mock a parent's complaints about information being left out of the public record requests relating to "race, gender and sexual orientation."
"I am very tired. I almost want to vomit when I hear the word redaction," he said.
A Rhode Island public school teacher, Ramona Bessinger, told Fox News Digital, "If schools are inconvenienced by this parent concern for transparency, too bad."
"In 2020, harmful curriculum platforms laden with inappropriate sexual content, pseudo-gender ideologies and divisive anti-American content made its way into K-12 education. Of course parents and teachers like myself have expressed serious concern," she added.
"Parents, community members and even taxpayers have a right to access and critique school curriculums without being smeared," Wenyuan Wu of the Californians for Equal Rights Foundation, said. "If school districts can expend excessive funds on politicizing controversial issues, such as $1,500 an hour for liberated ethnic studies professional development or $15,000 for race consciousness training, why can’t they just comply with simple public records requests from parents?
Most public schools do not publicly share what children are being taught in classrooms, some even refuse to answer questions, leaving some taxpayers with no other options than to request records.
"The solution to a burdensome influx of public records requests… is academic transparency in public school," said the Independent Women's Forum's Nicole Solas. "All the time schools now spend responding to public records requests can more wisely be spent on posting public information so that… requests are no longer needed."
Parents around the country have gleaned insight into what they believe is radical curriculum that is being taught in their schools through public record requests.
For example, Yale's Center for Emotional Intelligence was recently exposed, first reported by Fox News, for inculcating millions of children in public schools to be angry and "see red" about social justice issues the teacher presents in the classroom.
Errol Hassell Elementary in Oregon taught an antiracist curriculum which instructed kids "Why is being color-blind not the best choice?"
In another example, obtained by parents via public record requests, the Newport-Mesa Unified School District was teaching kids about "gender identity" with a "genderbread" man.
"It's horrifying," a parent said. "And they try to create the little ‘Genderbread’ man to make it seem like it's more fun. And it's for younger kids – it's appealing – but it's confusing [for them]."
School districts have used a variety of measures to prevent the public's records from being released. One district in Arizona was accused of "intimidation" after it published the parents' names who requested records.
Another tactic used by districts is to charge exorbitant fees.
In Rhode Island, South Kingstown, Solas sent in requests that amounted to 74K regarding the school's curriculum for her daughter, who was in kindergarten at the time. She told Fox News Digital it was her last resort as the school refused to answer her questions.
A Michigan district reportedly charged fees as high as $18 million to complete their requests.
"I don’t know what they’re hiding, but they’re definitely hiding information. Why make it so difficult for parents to get [public records] if they don’t have something to hide," a parent said.
Bessinger said parents are willing to die on the hill of transparency.
"School need to return to politically neutral zones, with curricula transparency restored and proper vetting of all books and texts. Parents see their children weaponized and adversely influenced by the constant barrage of bizarre content, it is their obligation and right to speak up and demand accountability. If schools are mired down by parental concern. Oh well, this is the hill we all die on," she said.
The Washington Post did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
