Less than two weeks after the Pennsylvania State Board of Education unanimously voted to cancel an anti-bullying speech by a gay writer at a middle school, the move comes after pressure from parents, students and administrators. The school board voted Wednesday night to reverse the decision and resume the event.
The 5-4 vote by the Cumberland Valley School District Board of Trustees, held in front of a large crowd of community members packed into the high school auditorium, accused the board of canceling an event featuring actor and author Maulik Pancholy. He denounced it for several hours. What they said were homophobic concerns.
Board member Bud Schaffner, who came under fire for making a motion to cancel the speech at the April 15 meeting, apologized for remarks about Pancholy's “lifestyle.” He then introduced and voted in favor of a motion to reinstate the speech.
“I will accept responsibility for the insensitive words I said on April 15,” he said at the beginning of Wednesday's meeting. “I fully understand your interpretation of my poor choice of words.”
Many community members who spoke during the public comment period at Wednesday's meeting echoed some board members' claims that Pancholy's talk was canceled over concerns about what they called his “political activity.” Rejected.
“Mawlik Pancholi's claim to be a political activist and use that as a justification to cancel his event is an excuse that the public can see through.”,” one person told the board.
Mr. Pancholy, who appeared on “30 Rock'' and provided the voice of Baljeet in the cartoon “Phineas and Ferb,'' has written children's books that include gay characters who stand up to bullying and discrimination, and speaks at school events. I often do it. He was scheduled to speak at a May 22 rally at Mountain View Middle School in Mechanicsburg, a community of about 9,000 people about 160 miles west of Philadelphia.
It was unclear Wednesday night whether Mr. Pancholy had committed to speak at the revived event.
The two board members who voted against resuming the event on Wednesday, Matthew Barrick and Kelly Pottiger, said the anti-bullying organization's website about holding protests and other ways to combat discrimination posted on the anti-bullying organization's website. It made the connection to an anti-racism “toolkit” containing guidance. An organization that Mr. Pancholy helped found and cited as evidence of his political activities.
“If you still don't understand why I personally consider Maulik Pancholy to be a political activist, just agree to disagree,” Barrick told the meeting.
Mr Barrick also said parents who object to the speaker would not be given the option to opt out if Parliament resumed. But another board member said the district's policy already allows for that option.
An overwhelming majority of the dozens of people who spoke during the public comment portion of Wednesday's meeting supported resuming the event, but a minority of those who spoke supported canceling it and agreed to view the issue as political. .
Cumberland Valley School District Superintendent Mark Blanchard said at the meeting that middle school administrators bring in young adult authors to speak each year and contacted Pancholy for the first time about speaking in 2019. He explained that he had taken it.
He added that the administration did not have an opportunity to provide input to the board because the revocation motion was not on the April 15 agenda.
Some of those who spoke during the public comment period Wednesday night said they were embarrassed by the move to cancel the event and expressed concern for other school boards across the country whose school board actions have been embroiled in battles over book bans. Some said they were disappointed that the behavior was starting to resemble that of the United States. and sex education.
Some former and current students at the meeting identified themselves as part of the LGBTQ community and said Pancholy's speech helped them feel more accepted at their school. He said he was able to do it.