An Oct. 7 Sun Journal headline read, “Faced with growing ire from extremists, school boards searching for federal help.”

During public comment at the Oct. 4 RSU 16 board of directors meeting, some citizens spoke in opposition to the district’s mask policy. But the article zeroed in on one woman who spoke against masking children and tied her “extreme opposition” to a national trend of fed-up parents voicing their opposition to certain school policies.

Meanwhile, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland directed the Federal Bureau of Investigation to investigate “harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence” against school officials. There was no violence or intimidation during the meeting in Poland. There was spirited dissent of the district’s mask policy.

Surely, any acts of violence or harassment of public officials is unlawful and should be condemned. But any such behavior can be handled within the local jurisdiction.

The FBI won’t even investigate the recorded harassment of Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema in a bathroom, or the harassment of Sen. Rand Paul and his wife last year.

Maud Maron is a mother of four children in Manhattan and a former school board member. In a recent article Maron wrote, she says, “As a school board chair, I was harassed, bullied, smeared…But when you are an elected board member you have an obligation to listen to everyone — everyone — at public meetings.”

Being able to publicly dissent on an issue is a right of everyone in America.

Kevin Landry, Lewiston

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