Disallows Rebuttal From Group
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On Sunday, May 5, Jim Johnson, Executive Editor of the Star Democrat wrote this piece:
Moms For Liberty fields candidates in elections - Star Democrat (newsmemory.com)
It is an interesting piece in that it scolds three school board candidates for non-response to questions from the paper, incorrectly claims they have been endorsed by Moms for Liberty Talbot and lies about Moms for Liberty in general.
I wrote a rebuttal to the article but was told it exceeded the word limit and would not be published. I asked Mr. Johnson if that limit applies to all pieces or just ones whose opinions the Star Democrat doesn't like. I am waiting for his answer.
In full disclosure, I am the chapter chair for Moms for Liberty Talbot. This is something I don't keep secret and I always disclose when I write articles about the group for THE EASTON GAZETTE.
Another disclosure, I have been very critical of the biased way the Star Democrat has covered recent events in Oxford, Maryland, the town I live in. Every town meeting is covered by a Star Democrat writer who does what could be classified as a "Press Release" for the town. She never interviews anyone who disagrees with the actions of the Town Commissioners or the Town Manager, Cheryl Lewis. In fact, the articles she writes could be called "fluff pieces" or even "propaganda."
So, since the Star Democrat won't print my rebuttal, I am publishing it here:
In his opinion column in the Easton Star Democrat dated Sunday, May 5, 2024,
Star Democrat Executive Editor Jim Johnson wrote an article entitled, “Moms for Liberty Fields Candidates in Elections.”
I am the current Chapter Chair for Moms for Liberty Talbot and I’m sad to report that Mr. Johnson made no attempt to contact me to verify the information contained in his article.
Moms for Liberty Talbot encourages people to run for school board and other political offices. We feel the more choices people have, the better. Although we didn’t “field” the candidates mentioned we certainly sent out a call for people to run in the districts that are open for election in 2024. It is a sad situation when a candidate for any position runs unopposed.
We are a 501c4 organization and follow the rules set forth for an organization with that designation. These rules allow limited, non-partisan support of candidates in school board races.
He goes on to say, “Voters need to know that three candidates for the Talbot County Board of Education are backed by Moms For Liberty, a group that has raised questions across the country and stirred controversy with its views.”
Neither Moms for Liberty Talbot nor the national organization Moms for Liberty has made an official endorsement or backed ANY candidates in the Talbot School Board races. That doesn’t mean we won’t support board candidates at a certain point, but we are not at this time. We like to do our research and get to know the candidates first.
Mr. Johnson could have made a simple phone call to me to find out our status on endorsements or backing candidates, but he did not.
I can’t speak for any of the candidates regarding their responses or lack thereof to the Star Democrat “questionnaire”, but I will state that since there are not three candidates in either of the districts, there is no meaningful primary in any of them. Therefore, a candidate can wait until closer to the election to state their opinions.
The Star Democrat is a newspaper, Mr. Johnson, not an official arbiter of how candidates should conduct their campaign or when they should answer questions from any group in an election year. It is a common practice to wait until closer to the date of the election for candidates to state detailed opinions.
Our local chapter has scheduled and will offer an opportunity to ALL school board candidates to meet voters and answer questions in a forum in the fall closer to the election. Invitations will be sent to ALL candidates prior to that event. Being closer to the election will allow voters to get an idea of who candidates are right before voting. This makes for a more accurate, up to date view of what the candidates believe.
Mr. Johnson, who I suppose is pretending to share facts about Moms for Liberty, is wrong and biased in his portrayal of our group. He says we are controversial. I guess when you advocate for parents instead of unions and special interest groups, you are called controversial.
As Mr. Johnson picks descriptors of Moms for Liberty, he uses biased, disproven descriptions from the Associated Press and an extremely biased liberal politics professor from Virginia. These descriptions don’t address the reality that Moms for Liberty supports parental rights which allow parents a seat at the decision-making table for the educational, medical, and mental health decisions made regarding their children. This is our main mission.
Parental rights mean allowing parents the right to keep their children from being exposed to pornographic materials in school, taught racist doctrine, forced to be exposed to the opposite gender in bathrooms/locker rooms, or encouraged to undertake drastic hormone blocking treatments and mutilation of their bodies without parental knowledge or permission and without informed consent of the horrific side effects and lifetime disabilities. Moms for Liberty is dedicated to helping ALL parents be aware of what is happening in the schools so they can assert their rights in the educational decision-making process.
Attendance at one of our meetings might have helped Mr. Johnson see or hear that for himself. He could have met our members, some of whom are local and state officials and talked to them about their views. Instead, he relied on third party, biased opinions which portray us as a divisive group who undermines local governing bodies and Democracy.
Did Mr. Johnson ask any local education officials about how we work in Talbot County? I doubt it.
As the local chair of Moms for Liberty, I meet often with Talbot County officials including Superintendent of Schools Dr. Pepukayi. We discuss the many issues, questions and concerns of parents in the county. We agree on some issues and disagree on others. But it is always a positive dialogue and both benefit.
Dr. Pepukayi and School Board President Emily Jackson are invited to attend our members meetings periodically to answer questions and have discussions with us. Dr. Pepukayi has done so twice; Emily Jackson once. All three of these events were an opportunity to share ideas in a respectful, positive manner. Does Mr. Johnson know we have a good relationship with both and with many people in the local school district? Maybe he should do some real journalistic research before giving opinions. He is an executive editor after all.
Members of our group attend school board meetings so that we know what is going on in our schools. We are often supportive of our school board and have joined with them in the past to oppose state legislation that would diminish their role in local control of the schools.
Mr. Johnson opines that he wishes the three candidates named had taken advantage of the questions from the Star Democrat to share their opinions with the public. In case he doesn’t know, it’s a long time between now and November for candidates to share their ideas and there will be many opportunities. Last time I checked, the Star Democrat is not the only news outlet in town as much as Mr. Johnson would like to think it is.
For a candidate to answer questions created arbitrarily by a reporter eight months from the election is counterproductive and, quite frankly, not very smart. Issues can change so much between now and then. Maybe the better question is why the Star Democrat put out the questionnaire so early in the election year especially since there is no real primary in the school board races. Most people will forget the candidate’s answers by November.
Overall, Mr. Johnson’s opinion piece is being used to target a group he doesn’t like and to prejudice voters against candidates he doesn’t know. He does this with lies, distortions, and omissions. Maybe he is just angry that three candidates didn’t decide to do as he wants and answer his publication's questions NOW.
Maybe he should sit down and talk with them and with our group. Moms for Liberty Talbot will await his call.
Jan Greenhawk
Chapter Chair- Moms for Liberty Talbot
And the Star Democrat wonders why they are losing subscribers.
PERHAPS MR JOHNSON SHOULD DISCLOSE HIS POLITICAL LEANINGS. According to our sources, Mr. Johnson is an extreme left leaning liberal brought in from Minnesota to serve as the Executive Editor for the Star Democrat.
Well said and I believe it's totally correct.