Press Room
Donald Trump and His Bullying Rhetoric Have No Place in Maryland Public Schools
Last night, media outlets began reporting that Donald Trump will be making a campaign appearance at Stephen Decatur High School in Worcester County on Wednesday night.
Today, Maryland State Education Association President Betty Weller released the following statement:
“Donald Trump and his divisive, fear-mongering rhetoric have no place in the halls of Maryland’s public schools. Trump’s eagerness to bully minorities would be unacceptable if it came from any of our students.
“School should be a safe place for all students, no matter their background. Allowing Trump to speak in a public school normalizes and condones bullying attitudes and behavior that go against the tolerance and acceptance that educators strive to teach our students every day.
“On behalf of more than 71,000 teachers and education support professionals in Maryland—and the students we teach—MSEA calls on the Worcester County Board of Education to reverse the decision to allow Trump to campaign on school property.”
“The Trump Effect,” a recent survey of teachers by the Southern Poverty Law Center, found that two-thirds of teachers report that their students “have expressed concerns or fears about what might happen to them or their families after the election” and more than one-third have seen “an increase in anti-Muslim or anti-immigrant sentiment.”