‘One sign goes down, thousands go up:' Community rallies around West Ada welcome message
The West Ada School District made national headlines recently when administrators ordered a school teacher to remove signs containing welcoming messages from her classroom.
Community members quickly responded, ensuring the sign's messages would be seen far beyond a single classroom. On Sunday afternoon, West Ada parents staged a Chalk the Walk event, painting the sidewalks outside several West Ada schools with welcoming words.
Hundreds of people gathered outside the West Ada School District's administrative offices in Meridian to send a message to school leaders through chalk. Others went to schools across the district to chalk outside their doors.
'One sign goes down, thousands go up in its place,' West Ada parent Chris Stewart told the Idaho Statesman at the event. 'That's kind of resonated as the rallying cry.'
Administrators have faced outcry since it became public that they told Sarah Inama, a 35-year-old world civilization teacher at Lewis and Clark Middle School in Meridian, to remove two signs from her classroom in February.
People wrote the words from Inama's signs, as well as additional welcoming messages and statements of rebuke against the district's actions.
One of them reads, 'Everyone is welcome here,' above hands of different skin tones.
The other says, 'In this room, everyone is welcome, important, accepted, respected, encouraged, valued,' with each word highlighted in a different color.
District officials took issue with the signs for being 'too political' and because they 'don't allow people to express differing opinions,' Inama said.
Inama initially removed the signs before having a change of heart, returning to her classroom over the weekend to put them back up.
The district now says Inama has until the end of the school year to remove the decorations. District spokesperson Niki Scheppers told the Statesman that disciplinary measures would be handled internally at that time if she did not comply.
Parents within the district have been vocal about their disagreement with the district's decision.
'I understand there are policies in place, and those can be complicated,' Conor Hiney, a parent of two district students, said. 'I know they're doing work to try to make those the best they can. But I think their initial reaction, and then really their reaction after this hit the news, has just been disappointing. I was expecting slightly better leadership.'
Parents at one chalk event told the Statesman they didn't understand why administrators would describe these messages as political.
'I know the temperature right now is really hot out there in our country, but everything's not political,' Quinnten Anderson, another West Ada parent, said. 'It's really just a message that unites people together.'
In emails shared by the district with the Statesman, Marcus Myers, the district's chief academic officer, told Inama to remove the signs because they violated Idaho's Dignity and Nondiscrimination in Public Education Act, as well as school policy, which requires signs to be 'content neutral and conducive to a positive learning environment.'
The district also told the Statesman it was concerned it would violate House Bill 41. Signed by Gov. Brad Little on Thursday, the new law bans 'flags or banners that present political, religious, or ideological views, including but not limited to political parties, race, gender, sexual orientation, or political ideologies' in schools.
Inama, who attended the Lewis and Clark Middle School chalk event, said she has been 'blown away' by the community's response.
'There's not been an inkling of hesitation,' Inama said. 'People have just been like, 'Of course, everyone is welcome here, no matter what.' And that's the way it should be. It's not about politics. It's not about personal opinions.'
Many attendees at the event wore shirts bearing Inama's 'everyone is welcome here' sign.
Stewart started selling T-shirts with the graphic at cost as another way to spread the message. He estimates he has sold more than 20,000. People have ordered them from as far away as New Zealand. Even members of the TV show General Hospital and Grammy-winning hip-hop group Arrested Development have contacted Steward to buy shirts.
Stewart hopes the words on the sidewalks and shirts will change kids' perceptions of their hometown.
'I am so tired of seeing Boise on the news about these weird stories,' Stewart said. 'I don't see that in Boise. I see what we see in front of us right here. I see Boise is a welcoming, accepting place. I've had opportunities of a lifetime here, and I'm raising my son here, who looks like me, and I want him to know that he's in a loving, supportive, welcoming place.'
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