Tim Sweeney-Fanelli, Kate West and Jess Campbell are Concord residents and parents of Christa McAuliffe School students. They are the group administrators for the ‘Support for Mr. Allard’ Facebook group.
We represent a group of hundreds of parents and community leaders deeply concerned by the hateful, homophobic, and fabricated allegations being made against one of Concord School District’s beloved teachers, Silas Allard.
We reject any attempts to target or threaten any member of our community based on any aspect of their identity, including gender, sexual orientation, race, family structure, nationality, or language. No one in our community should fear for their safety or be forced to change who they are or how they present themselves because of hate and ignorance.
Our children and educators deserve to feel and be safe in presenting their authentic selves. We support and celebrate diversity, something that is particularly important for students who do not often see themselves reflected in their classrooms or curriculum.
We support Mr. Allard and will not let these homophobic slurs and attacks stand.
Our school district needs to act swiftly in the face of hate that threatens our students and educators.
We appreciate the school board’s unanimous reaffirmation of their commitment to value diversity, individualism, and inclusion, but it is not enough. We expect our school board, district administration, teachers’ union, and others to quickly join the chorus of parents and community leaders to publicly denounce this hateful rhetoric. To do anything less is dangerous and damaging to our staff, our students, and our community.
We call upon the members of the school board, the school district administration, the teachers’ union, and Superintendent Kathleen Murphy to stand up and publicly speak out against hatred and to make it loud and clear that everyone is welcome here, as they are.
We thank all of the parents and community members who have already come forward and call on members of our broader community to join with us and voice your support for love, inclusion, and acceptance.