Call to Action: Write to the Everett School Board

(For context, read the last blog post found here.)

With a looming deadline of responding to LifeWise’s threat letter by December 5, it is more important than ever to reach out to the Board with your voice of support. The Everett School Board attempted to play it safe by allowing LIfeWise to operate in the district and it backfired spectacularly. Right now we ask you to send a wave of encouragement and support to empower the ESD Board to do the right thing: DO NOT capitulate to LifeWise and their ridiculous demands.

Here are some talking points that you can incorporate into your own words: 

• LifeWise is demanding actions from the school board that have not been subjected to public comment.

• LifeWise is insisting on privileged and special treatment.

• Perhaps the most egregious demand is that LifeWise be allowed to put their own “convenience” over the safety of our children.

• LifeWise references secular organizations being privileged over them, but literally no other organizations are pulling kids out of school during the day. 

• The difference between organizations advertising in the lobby is that they are outside of school hours, or are community resources such as food banks and utility services.

• Separation of church and state is being protected by the school district, and the district must continue to do so.

• Religious neutrality on the part of Board action is key.

• By national AND state law, it is within the school district's legal right to remove this program from Everett schools.

• The named SCOTUS case Zorach v Clauson is NOT a mandate forcing school districts to allow programs like LifeWise to pull students out of school; it leaves it up to the discretion of each school district.

• Washington is a MAY state, which means we have no legal requirement to allow this program to operate.

  
  

Bottom line, we must remind the Everett School Board that they hold tremendous power and responsibility in standing up to Christian Nationalism and protecting the safety of our children. They need to remind LifeWise that their already privileged operation in the district is conditional and can be removed at any time, in accordance with national and state law. 

Write to: schoolboard@everettsd.orgcc: Superintendent Dr. Ian Saltzman: superintendent@everettsd.org