School district cancels lesson on pronouns after staff receives threats

CLINTON COUNTY, Mich. (WILX/Gray News) - A Michigan school district has canceled a voluntary lesson exploring gender identity and pronoun use through discussion and literature after several school staff members received threats.

DeWitt Public Schools posted the announcement canceling the lesson Friday on Facebook. The lesson, which was planned for first graders, sparked debate across the community, WILX reports.

“The purpose of the mini-lesson was to promote greater understanding, compassion, and kindness regarding gender identity and the use of pronouns after concerns were brought to our attention,” wrote Superintendent Shanna Spickard on Facebook.

Spickard says parents and guardians were informed in advance and given the opportunity to opt their child out of the lesson or request a more in-depth look at the lesson plan.

After the lesson was announced, Spickard says several school staff members “received inappropriate, angry, and threatening phone calls, emails, and social media messages.” She added that some staff members were subject to a cyberbullying practice called “doxxing.” in which their personal information and that of their families and children was put online to harass them.

“While the vast majority of these inappropriate communications have originated outside of our community, several staff members have expressed feeling anxious, stressed, and even afraid to go to school. This is unacceptable,” Spickard wrote.

In light of the threats, the lesson was canceled.

The school district is in contact with law enforcement and has increased both police and administrative presence as precautionary measures.

Before the lesson’s cancellation, WILX’s DeAnna Giles spoke to parents who both opposed and supported the lesson plan.

Brandi Strahan whose children attend DeWitt elementary schools says 5 to 7 years old is too young for a discussion on pronouns.

“They don’t know who they are yet. They’re still growing,” said Strahan in an interview Wednesday.

On the other hand, Janna, a former DeWitt parent, says this lesson would’ve helped her family.

“When my kid was young, I thought it was just a phase... I thought it was the new thing until my kid tried taking his life because he wasn’t understood,” said Janna in an interview Wednesday. “Even if people don’t understand it, it’s all about inclusion and making every kid feel safe and welcome in any district.”

Spickard’s full statement on the cancellation of the lesson reads as follows:

“At DeWitt Public Schools, we are committed to providing a safe and welcoming learning environment that helps all our students achieve and succeed. We do not tolerate discrimination, harassment, bullying, or threats of any kind, whether on school property or on social media.

I wanted to take the opportunity to update you regarding an optional mini-lesson outside our general curriculum we offered to students in one of our elementary school classrooms. The purpose of the mini-lesson was to promote greater understanding, compassion, and kindness regarding gender identity and the use of pronouns after concerns were brought to our attention. Parents and guardians were informed in advance and given the opportunity to opt out, as the lesson was 100% voluntary, and not part of our school curriculum.

Since that announcement, several of our hard-working school staff members have received inappropriate, angry, and threatening phone calls, emails, and social media messages. Some staff members have had their personal information, including information regarding their families and children, placed online to harass and intimidate them, a cyberbullying practice called “doxing.” While the vast majority of these inappropriate communications have originated outside of our community, several staff members have expressed feeling anxious, stressed, and even afraid to go to school. This is unacceptable. We are in contact with local law enforcement regarding these communications and have increased both police and administrative presence as precautionary measures.

The goal of the voluntary mini-lesson was to help promote Dewitt Public Schools’ vision of a safe, nurturing, and supportive learning environment where all learners can succeed. Unfortunately, it has become a major disruption and distraction to that vision in which our staff, administrators, and students feel unsafe. Therefore, in consultation with our School Board, administrative leadership team, and school employees, I have made the decision to cancel the mini-lesson to help ensure the safety of our entire school community and maintain our focus on providing a world-class education to all learners.

We realize this decision will please some and disappoint others in our school community, and I can assure you we did not reach this decision lightly. We did so simply out of legitimate safety concerns expressed by the amazing group of educators and administrators who work hard every day to provide a culture of excellence.

I truly appreciate the outpouring of support from many of our parents and community members, as well as our excellent and dedicated teachers, support staff, and other school employees. I want to make abundantly clear that this decision will in no way distract us from our mission and core values to promote compassion, kindness, and a greater understanding of the diverse world we live in and prepare young people to be leaders and world citizens in that world. It is an honor to serve as your superintendent.”