Rights & Democracy, a grassroots organization supporting equity and human rights in Vermont and New Hampshire, announced Thursday that it had received threats of retaliation from area residents ahead of a meeting in Randolph intended to support local LGBTQ+ students.
Last year, Randolph became embroiled in controversy after a story published by WCAX featured a student volleyball player objecting to a transgender teammate’s use of a school locker room. That story spurred hate speech toward the trans girl and her family, and a forum to discuss the situation was canceled after threats were made toward the school district.
In a statement, Rights & Democracy said that “a right-wing sect of area residents who are promoting a transphobic agenda threatened to show up to an upcoming meeting and retaliate against local organizers.”
Those threats were made online, including via email, toward a woman of color working to create safer and more equitable schools in Orange County, according to Mia Schultz, Rights & Democracy’s Vermont education justice organizer.
“One of the remarks was, ‘we’re going to show her about canceling,’” Schultz said, referencing another one of Rights & Democracy’s organizers. “At the end of the day, that sounds like a threat to me.”
According to Schultz, an organizer received the messages after Vermont Technical College canceled a screening of What Is a Woman?, a documentary widely criticized as transphobic. Local conservative blogger and former Orange County state senate candidate John Klar earlier this week publicized the showing’s cancellation, blaming a member of Rights & Democracy for rallying opposition to the movie on social media.
Klar denied making any threats toward Rights & Democracy and said he was not aware of any peers having done so either.
“I’ve never heard a single word about the meeting or anybody in our group having any interest in going,” Klar said. “I’m not aware of any even remote interest in engaging negatively with people.”
Rights & Democracy still plans to hold its meeting, which Schultz said is not typically open to the public. Members will focus on creating an equity policy for the Orange Southwest School District, which includes Randolph Union High School, that encompasses “voices of concern,” she said.
If anything, Schultz thinks the episode has brought the group closer together.
“I think it’s made us a little bit stronger,” she said, “because it means we have to take care of each other.”
Erin Petenko contributed reporting.