I was raised in the town of Wappingers Falls, New York. Nestled right next to Poughkeepsie on the Hudson River is the town I called home for the majority of my life. There was diversity in our schools from the moment I started kindergarten at Vassar Road Elementary School, and I never felt as though there was much of any discrimination throughout my career as a student in the Wappingers Central School District. I felt like I was free to be myself, and I felt as though many others who felt comfortable in their own skin were free to do the same. The teachers I came in contact with were generally supportive of the choices students made, as long as they were not harming themselves or others in the process. But when I saw this letter come across my Facebook newsfeed the other day, I was shocked to see that maybe this sense of security to be yourself may have vanished.

Recently, a member of the Board of Education for the Wappingers Central School District named Anne LaValle was caught making incredibly offensive and ignorant posts on her personal Facebook page. I first learned of the news by finding a beautifully written letter by the president of the Roy C. Ketcham High School’s Pride Club, a senior named Ira Cekici, which you can read here.

Looking closer into LaValle’s Facebook posts, her personal wall is covered in quotes from the Bible and hateful words towards the LGBTQ and Islamic communities. She voices her opinions on subjects of gender, the LGBTQ community and her spiritual beliefs on those subjects on a daily basis through her personal page. The comments she has made, whether she meant for people to see them or not, were incredibly offensive to the many students in the Wappingers Central School District. With the event of Orlando just happening last week, it's even more of a reason why she does not belong in a position of power such as the one she is in. One main question comes to mind, "How is it that we, our town which I thought was generally accepting of people, manage to elect someone so filled with hate towards people of our schools and communities to such an important position?"

Students of past and present, along with members of the faculty and parents of children have been outraged by the harsh words written on her private page. A former Roy C. Ketcham High School student Zachary Cox who graduated in 2012 commented about the current situation. “On page 9 of the proposed WCSD 2016-2017 Code of Conduct the role of the Board of Education is stated as being "to promote a safe, orderly and stimulating school environment, supporting active teaching and learning for all students regardless of actual or perceived race, color, weight, national origin, ethnic group, religion, religious practice, disability, sexual orientation, gender or sex".

By allowing Anne LaValle to be a member of the Board of Education and make such incredibly ignorant and hateful comments during board meetings and on her personal Facebook page, it is my belief that the Board of Education is currently not fulfilling its aforementioned role. She is entitled to her idiotic, hateful opinions -- yes. But she has no place serving on the Board of Education if her backwards approach towards gender identity and sexuality are going to negatively impact her ability to promote a safe environment for all students.”

“Furthermore,” Zachary continued, “the BOE is to "address personal biases that may prevent equal treatment of all students and staff". Again, if I am understanding the code correctly, Anne LaValle is in direct violation of her duties as a member of the Board of Education and her conduct needs to be addressed not only by the public, but by her peers and superiors.”

Zach also shared with me something that LaValle posted on her personal facebook page a few weeks ago that actually made me laugh:

"There is no such thing as transgender.

There is no such thing as gay marriage.

There is no such thing as two mothers.

They are contradictions.

They are sterile concepts.

They are lies, confusion and death.

We are hurting them by encouraging them to pursue the lies and sterility."

Well, guess what? They exist, they’re not contradictions. And people of the LGBTQ community are going to continue to live their lives that way whether she likes it or not. She also once quoted saying she “needs a safe space” after New York State officially announced that citizens will have the choice between 31 different genders. Sorry, but I’m pretty sure the LGBTQ community feels as though they need a safe space away from LaValle and her hate speech, not the other way around.

When he read about the news, another 2012 RCK alumni member, who is also a proud member of the LGBTQ community, posted a long letter addressing the situation and posted it to his own personal Facebook page. His words along with Zachary’s, which I have included below, summed up how I felt about the situation perfectly.

“As a proud member of the LGBT community and of the Roy C. Ketcham class of 2012, I am personally offended and disturbed by your remarks, Ms. LaValle. You cannot disenfranchise vulnerable teenagers who are still in the process of discovering their sexual and gender identities simply because you have decided not to educate yourself on the matter. In my freshman year of high school, Masque and Mime performed the Laramie Project for the Autumn Play. It told the story of Matthew Shepard, a gay man who was beaten, tortured and left die for having the audacity to live openly and true to himself. You may believe your words to be benign, but it is misinformed speech like yours that creates these monsters. The monsters that killed Matthew, and the monsters that threaten my life everyday. Your words are vindicating the actions of high school bullies, teaching them to marginalize their fellow students according to their differences. It does not start with violence, it starts with words. Men such as Omar Mateen, who committed the atrocity against my community in Orlando, are molded by people like you, Ms. LaValle. In the words of Mary Griffith, "Before you echo 'Amen' in your home or place of worship, think and remember...a child is listening."

With the shooting in Orlando, Florida that just happened last week, it is even more important that someone who is of such a homophobic nature to not be in such a position of power over our children in our school districts. Whether or not she is a supporter of LGBTQ rights or not isn’t the issue at hand. The issue is that someone who is supposed to be making decisions to make our schools a safer and better place for young kids is publicly making it known how much she despises and does not respect people of that community. What I wish Mrs. LaValle would understand is that love is love, and her hateful comments aren't going to stop people from loving one another I, along with many other members of the WCSD alumni and current community, would greatly appreciate if you read and signed the following petition. With this we have hope that Anne LaValle will be taken off of the Board of Education for our school district as soon as possible, making the LGBTQ community of the Wappingers Central School District feel a bit safer walking through their halls. If you're interested, then please go to the following link.