Support for Angela Reading (New Jersey MOM)
Support for Angela Reading (New Jersey MOM)
The Issue
Good afternoon.
I write to correct the facts detailed in a recent petition against Angela Reading:
I find it only fitting that those so opposed to her language view her commentary in full and not just what was alluded to in the original petition:
As you can see, she in no way calls for violence, reprimand, or criticism of the LGBTQAI+ community for its beliefs, actions, teachings, or core tenants. Instead, she notes with sorrow that she had to have a conversation with her child about polysexualism earlier than she would have liked. She, for better or for worse, feels that topics of a sexual nature be kept inside health studies classrooms and not out in the general hallways where very young children who can read may view them. Human anatomy, for example, is scientific, natural, and, some say, beautiful. Still, most parents choose when to disclose to their children how they came to be on this earth. The same dignity and deference are what Ms. Reading recommended in her post when she voiced her upset at seeing these posters while walking the halls with her seven-year-old.
Those claiming that this put a target on the school and students are gaslighting. We live in a world where parental concerns, exactly like this one, are shared on social media daily. Just because Mrs. Reading sat on the Regional School Board, that does not take away her right to share and speak up about local school matters as a parent.
I feel it appropriate that you know who you are bashing. The following story contains facts only, not opinions.
Mrs. Reading was born to a troubled family in Trenton, NJ. As a teenager, she ran away and was homeless, representing herself to a judge to be free from those trying to harm her. To afford food, she taught gymnastics to children at the local YMCA and worked at a preschool. She slept on friends' couches and eventually had to get her own apartment. She got into an excellent undergraduate institution in high school but could not get a loan to pay tuition because she had no credit. Thus, she attended community college, transferred to Rider University, and worked in education for the next ten years, getting her MA at night with two small children. For Angela, school has been the one place on earth where she felt safe. After marrying and settling down, Ms. Reading decided she wanted to attend law school and received a full academic scholarship to Villanova Law. She has maintained a position on the Northern Burlington BOE through that time. During her time on the board, she strongly advocated for students, teachers, and the community. She has actively been involved with NAFIS and Impact Aid for military schools and has been a delegate to NJSBA and BCSBA. Mrs. Reading is a conservative and does not lie about her beliefs. In fact, she feels she owes the public her candor as an elected official.
This month, Mrs. Reading was walking the school hallway with her 7-year-old child, who saw the above re-posed posters and asked her what a polysexual is. Mrs. Reading did not and does not believe that this kind of sexual and gender-supportive material belonged in a school hallway where young children could view it without context.
As to the allegations that she opposed the curriculum suggested by the Anti-Defamation League, known as the No Place for Hate program, please view any or all of the following:
These sources were not cherry-picked - they are almost all of the sources listed on the first page of a Google search with "ADL launches review" in the search engine.
Mrs. Reading is an advocate for candor and truth. If you were to read any of these sources, which came shortly after Mrs. Reading recommended an audit of the ADL's No Place for Hate Program, you would read that the ADL decided to conduct its own audit. The ADL released a statement in September of 2022:
"[C]ontent among our curricular materials that is misaligned with ADL's values and strategy… We intend to address this issue immediately and openly, [w]e are moving to launch a thorough review of our education content. We will review the findings and implement a process to update them appropriately and expeditiously. We will get this right."
Implicit in the statement is that the ADL found correctable material in its curriculum. Mrs. Reading would agree. The difference is that when Mrs. Reading said it, she was shamed for it, and when the ADL says it about its own material, it is hailed as an honest and dedicated force of good in society.
Mrs. Reading has the support of the Jewish communities from New Jersey to Pennsylvania. In an age where real Anti-Semitism is occurring, calling a colleague of mine who has never once voiced a remotely bigoted perspective on any of these horrible things raises the ire of my entire community. As the former president of my local Chabad, I have made it my mission to lean on every ear that will listen to decry this blatant harassment that has befallen my best friend.
I challenge any reader who signed the earlier petition and believes that the author inflated Mrs. Reading's speech to remove their name from that petition.
I encourage anyone who has sent her death threats to cease immediately and apologize for wishing harm on another person and their family for their beliefs.
Finally, if you believe that Ms. Reading has the right to audit curriculum as a curriculum chair, if you believe she has the right to determine the upbringing of her children as has been the law of the land under the 14th Amendment for 200 years, and if you believe that she has the right to speak her mind under the 1st Amendment - one for which this country was founded, sign your name below.
We are a nation of free ideas and a marketplace of open thought and tolerance. If those with whom you align yourselves wish death and injury, ridicule and harass, bully and target those who are openly against their viewpoints - if they threaten you with the potential for mass shootings and violence in response to someone voicing a different perspective - if they lead with fear instead of a desire to engage in thoughtful discussion, I have news for you: you are on the wrong team.
Legitimate ideologies can withstand opposing viewpoints. There is a difference between hate speech and speech that you hate. But just because you have been convinced to hate a person that has been so dehumanized half the signatures against her probably couldn't pick her out of a lineup does not mean you are sworn to that perspective. That is the beauty of our country and the right to free speech it has conferred on each of us. That is the beauty of America. That is the philosophy of Angela Reading. G-d bless America, our schools, our children, and our humanity. This is indeed no place for hatred.
3,627
The Issue
Good afternoon.
I write to correct the facts detailed in a recent petition against Angela Reading:
I find it only fitting that those so opposed to her language view her commentary in full and not just what was alluded to in the original petition:
As you can see, she in no way calls for violence, reprimand, or criticism of the LGBTQAI+ community for its beliefs, actions, teachings, or core tenants. Instead, she notes with sorrow that she had to have a conversation with her child about polysexualism earlier than she would have liked. She, for better or for worse, feels that topics of a sexual nature be kept inside health studies classrooms and not out in the general hallways where very young children who can read may view them. Human anatomy, for example, is scientific, natural, and, some say, beautiful. Still, most parents choose when to disclose to their children how they came to be on this earth. The same dignity and deference are what Ms. Reading recommended in her post when she voiced her upset at seeing these posters while walking the halls with her seven-year-old.
Those claiming that this put a target on the school and students are gaslighting. We live in a world where parental concerns, exactly like this one, are shared on social media daily. Just because Mrs. Reading sat on the Regional School Board, that does not take away her right to share and speak up about local school matters as a parent.
I feel it appropriate that you know who you are bashing. The following story contains facts only, not opinions.
Mrs. Reading was born to a troubled family in Trenton, NJ. As a teenager, she ran away and was homeless, representing herself to a judge to be free from those trying to harm her. To afford food, she taught gymnastics to children at the local YMCA and worked at a preschool. She slept on friends' couches and eventually had to get her own apartment. She got into an excellent undergraduate institution in high school but could not get a loan to pay tuition because she had no credit. Thus, she attended community college, transferred to Rider University, and worked in education for the next ten years, getting her MA at night with two small children. For Angela, school has been the one place on earth where she felt safe. After marrying and settling down, Ms. Reading decided she wanted to attend law school and received a full academic scholarship to Villanova Law. She has maintained a position on the Northern Burlington BOE through that time. During her time on the board, she strongly advocated for students, teachers, and the community. She has actively been involved with NAFIS and Impact Aid for military schools and has been a delegate to NJSBA and BCSBA. Mrs. Reading is a conservative and does not lie about her beliefs. In fact, she feels she owes the public her candor as an elected official.
This month, Mrs. Reading was walking the school hallway with her 7-year-old child, who saw the above re-posed posters and asked her what a polysexual is. Mrs. Reading did not and does not believe that this kind of sexual and gender-supportive material belonged in a school hallway where young children could view it without context.
As to the allegations that she opposed the curriculum suggested by the Anti-Defamation League, known as the No Place for Hate program, please view any or all of the following:
These sources were not cherry-picked - they are almost all of the sources listed on the first page of a Google search with "ADL launches review" in the search engine.
Mrs. Reading is an advocate for candor and truth. If you were to read any of these sources, which came shortly after Mrs. Reading recommended an audit of the ADL's No Place for Hate Program, you would read that the ADL decided to conduct its own audit. The ADL released a statement in September of 2022:
"[C]ontent among our curricular materials that is misaligned with ADL's values and strategy… We intend to address this issue immediately and openly, [w]e are moving to launch a thorough review of our education content. We will review the findings and implement a process to update them appropriately and expeditiously. We will get this right."
Implicit in the statement is that the ADL found correctable material in its curriculum. Mrs. Reading would agree. The difference is that when Mrs. Reading said it, she was shamed for it, and when the ADL says it about its own material, it is hailed as an honest and dedicated force of good in society.
Mrs. Reading has the support of the Jewish communities from New Jersey to Pennsylvania. In an age where real Anti-Semitism is occurring, calling a colleague of mine who has never once voiced a remotely bigoted perspective on any of these horrible things raises the ire of my entire community. As the former president of my local Chabad, I have made it my mission to lean on every ear that will listen to decry this blatant harassment that has befallen my best friend.
I challenge any reader who signed the earlier petition and believes that the author inflated Mrs. Reading's speech to remove their name from that petition.
I encourage anyone who has sent her death threats to cease immediately and apologize for wishing harm on another person and their family for their beliefs.
Finally, if you believe that Ms. Reading has the right to audit curriculum as a curriculum chair, if you believe she has the right to determine the upbringing of her children as has been the law of the land under the 14th Amendment for 200 years, and if you believe that she has the right to speak her mind under the 1st Amendment - one for which this country was founded, sign your name below.
We are a nation of free ideas and a marketplace of open thought and tolerance. If those with whom you align yourselves wish death and injury, ridicule and harass, bully and target those who are openly against their viewpoints - if they threaten you with the potential for mass shootings and violence in response to someone voicing a different perspective - if they lead with fear instead of a desire to engage in thoughtful discussion, I have news for you: you are on the wrong team.
Legitimate ideologies can withstand opposing viewpoints. There is a difference between hate speech and speech that you hate. But just because you have been convinced to hate a person that has been so dehumanized half the signatures against her probably couldn't pick her out of a lineup does not mean you are sworn to that perspective. That is the beauty of our country and the right to free speech it has conferred on each of us. That is the beauty of America. That is the philosophy of Angela Reading. G-d bless America, our schools, our children, and our humanity. This is indeed no place for hatred.
3,627
Share this petition
Petition created on December 3, 2022