Banned for life from all school-owned property.
That was the reality for Shawn McBreairty after he spoke critically about school policies at a school board meeting. He didn’t threaten anyone or say anything obscene. He merely exposed the truth about the radical sexualized curriculum being taught in his daughter’s public school.
Under Maine law, school board meetings are designed to operate as a public forum for “comment,” including from parents. But the RSU22 School Board created a “personnel matters” policy that prohibits those publicly commenting at school board meetings from discussing the job performance of employees, whether positive or negative.
Make no mistake—cloaked as protecting personnel privacy, in application, the school board leverages this policy to police speech that criticizes the woke agenda being pushed upon children.
This became clear when the school board shut down Shawn McBreairty but allowed other speakers to talk about school personnel.
For example, at one school board meeting, public speakers praised the 2022 Maine Teacher of the Year, Kelsey Stoyanova, calling her “thoughtful,” “intentional,” “brave,” and “brilliant.” The school board even joined the speakers in applauding her.
But at a later meeting, Shawn took his turn at the microphone to challenge this narrative and criticize Stoyanova over her curriculum. He played a prerecorded message raising concerns with the woke, sexualized content being forced on kids, including his own daughter.
Immediately, the school board ordered Shawn to sit down, cut his video feed, stopped the meeting, and called the Hampden Police Department to remove Shawn from the meeting.
Then they banned him for life from all school property.
With the help of the Center for American Liberty, Shawn McBreairty is now defending his right to petition the government for redress without fear of retaliation. The school board’s policy is viewpoint discriminatory and bans speech critical of the school, its teachers, and its woke curriculum. It is simply unconstitutional.
Whether it is Shawn McBreairty’s objection to the sexually graphic materials on display in the school’s library or any other parent’s objection to pro-Marxist curriculum being taught in their child’s classroom, parents must be allowed to offer viewpoints critical of schools, teachers, and curriculum at school board meetings. Parents shouldn’t have to fear government retribution for exercising their First Amendment rights.
School board meetings are no exception to the First Amendment.
District Court
03.24.2023. Plaintiff’s Verified Complaint
03.24.2023 Plaintiff’s Emergency Motion for TRO and PI
04.03.2023 Defendants’ Opposition to Emergency Motion for TRO and PI
04.06.2023 Plaintiff’s Reply in Support of Emergency Motion for TRO and PI
04.13.2023 Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss
04.26.2023 Order Denying Emergency Motion for TRO
04.27.2023 Plaintiff’s Motion for Injunction Pending Appeal
05.01.2023 Order Denying Injunction Pending Appeal
Court of Appeals
07.26.2023 Appellant’s Opening Brief
07.26.2023 Appellant’s Appendix
08.02.2023 Amicus Brief of Institute for Free Speech in Support of Appellant and Reversal
08.02.2023 Amicus Brief of CATO Institute in Support of Appellant and Reversal
08.25.2023 Answering Brief of Defendants-Appellees
09.15.2023 Appellant’s Reply Brief