A State Board of Education member from San Antonio has threatened to sue two other members of the board, alleging they’re harming her reputation by labeling her a “Marxist” and blaming her for spreading “gender confusion” among young people, the Texas Tribune reports.
Marisa B. Pérez-Díaz, a Democrat on the Republican-controlled board, sent cease-and-desist letters to GOP members Julie Pickren and Brandon Hall last week, arguing that their online statements about her had resulted in “substantial personal, professional, and reputational harm,” according to the nonprofit news site.
She further alleged the remarks could embolden others to target her and warned her colleagues that she could sue over the continued attacks.
“Nevertheless, you have continued this conduct yourself in a way that is not only unprofessional and uncalled for but that appears intended to incite harm and violence,” states the letter obtained by the Tribune.
Even so, neither Pickren nor Hall has throttled back the online attacks against Pérez-Díaz, the Tribune reports. The pair dismissed her concerns as a “meritless” assault on free speech.
The harsh words come after the Texas State Board of Education voted last week to enact statewide curriculum changes that could require Texas students from kindergarten through 8th grade to learn Bible verses in class. The Republican-led plan also ordered up rewrite of social studies lessons that critics charge diminishes minority voices and presents a whitewashed take on U.S. and Texas history.
Perez-Diaz, who holds a Master of Education degree and served as director of strategic partnerships for San Antonio’s Edgewood ISD, has been one of the most outspoken Democrats on the board in criticizing the controversial revisions.
“It’s a massive shift in how we approach social studies. We are no longer going to be focusing on world cultures or international relations and global learning. It has been completely diminished,” she told the Current in an interview last week. “There is an emphasis on U.S. and Texas exceptionalism in a way that downplays even the histories of Texas’ people.”
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