PHOENIX – Today, Marisol Garcia, the president of the Arizona Education Association, released the following statement urging school districts and state leaders to protect educators from harassment and online threats:
“In recent days, opponents of public education have exploited the shooting at Utah Valley University to justify threats against the lives and livelihoods of our members. We condemn these threats and all forms of political violence and we urge all public officials to do the same. Educators cannot teach and students cannot learn under threat of harassment and doxxing.
“Educators take pride in our responsibility to be mentors and role models for our students. That responsibility always comes with common-sense limits on the topics we discuss in the classroom. However, educators must have the right to freely express their personal views outside of school settings. Freedom of speech is the cornerstone of a free society, and we will always stand up for our members when their rights are threatened.
“In Arizona, many state lawmakers have repeatedly sought to weaken basic protections for educators and foment mistrust of public education. Great teachers – who are already overworked and underpaid – now risk their jobs if they express personal views in private settings. As a result of this hostile environment, our state has thousands of teaching vacancies and highly qualified educators are leaving the profession in droves. For the sake of our students and Arizona’s future, these political attacks on our profession must end.
“We urge school leaders and public officials to avoid actions that could validate or encourage threats against educators. School and district leaders must consider the legal and contractual rights of union members and give equal weight to justice and due process.”