FLORIDA: Jane Goodwin, Sarasota County School Board Chair, Orders Police to Forcibly Remove Parent and Mother of Four from Meeting
By Dr. Rich Swier
Goodwin had the mother of four children forcibly removed by police because she was, “about to say something horrible…[about a School Board Member].”
Sarasota County (FL) School Board Chairman orders police to throw a citizen out of a Public Meeting because she was…”About to say something horrible…[About a School Board Member]” during her public comment.
How is this NOT a violation of the 1st Amendment? pic.twitter.com/cWJoLnNpN1
— Christian Ziegler 🇺🇸 (@ChrisMZiegler) April 21, 2022
School Board Member Bridget Zeigler in an email stated:
This week, Sarasota County School Board Chairman, Jane Goodwin, ordered three law enforcement officers to escort a parent out of the public meeting for something Goodwin predicted the mom was “about to say” concerning a sitting School Board Member. Yes… “about to say”…
Today, Fox News has published a national story covering the outrageous incident- and yes it is outrageous. Watching this unfold in person made me sad, frustrated, embarrassed and angry. I am positive most citizens agree.
This is not how government works. Taxpayers pay for our school district and parents are our customers. They ALL have a right to have their voices heard. And elected officials should know that hearing feedback – both positive and negative – is a requirement of the job. If they don’t like it, they shouldn’t have run for office and should consider resigning.
Lastly, I hope you’ll help me get our School Board back to working with – not against – parents by making sure to vote on August 23rd.
Statement from Sarasota County Sheriff Kurt A. Hoffman on the ejection of a mother of four, exercising her First Amendment rights, by Jane Goodwin:
Parent speaks after Sarasota School Board tosses her for what she was ‘about to say’
A Sarasota County, Florida, parent who was kicked out of a school board meeting this week for what she was “about to say” said Thursday that the board’s liberal majority is “destroying our school district, targeting parents and eliminating dissent.”
Melissa Bakondy, a mother of four, was surrounded by police officers and ejected from a Sarasota County School Board meeting Tuesday after calling out a board member by name over comments she allegedly made during a previous meeting.
“At the last meeting, Shirley Brown was caught on the microphone –” Bakondy said during the meeting before being cut off.
“Stop talking about school board members,” board Chairwoman Jane Goodwin interrupted. “You cannot go and expound on school board members. I’ve warned you several times.”
When Bakondy asked why, Goodwin responded, “You were about to say something horrible about Shirley Brown. … You’ve said things about me that were untrue. Leave, please.”
Goodwin then asked Bakondy, “Do you have children in our school district?”
The question prompted an audible gasp from conservative board member Bridget Ziegler, who fired back, “That is not appropriate. … You don’t get to ask people who come to a public meeting whether they have children or not. Period. You are way out of line.”
[ … ]
Speaking to Fox News Digital in an interview, Bakondy slammed Goodwin as “the queen of no public input.”
©Dr. Rich Swier. All rights reserved.
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