Norma Garcia-Lopez: School board co-chair quits after doxxing anti-mask parents
A Hispanic school board member resigned after she faced "relentless attacks" on her by "white supremacists," in her own words. The attacks on Norma Garcia-Lopez, the Fort Worth Independent School District's Racial Equity Committee Co-Chair, came following the release of private information on Forth Worth parents who sued the district over Covid-19 mask mandates.
Even after admitting that she released the information on these parents on social media and also sent an expletive-filled voicemail to one of the mothers, Garcia-Lopez defended her decision to do so. According to Fox News, she resigned from her post saying that she could not allow the "vile and relentless attacks on me by white supremacists to distract from the pursuit of equity in the Fort Worth Independent School District."
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After Garcia-Lopez had allegedly received dozens of threatening and racist phone calls and social media messages, she has been backed by the school board at a news conference last Thursday, December 2. She had also secured a temporary injunction in August against the parents. Garcia-Lopez had accused some of the parents of flexing 'white power' in one of instance and revealed the phone number and addresses of four families in a Facebook post, as well as the name of one parent's employer and work address. In a foul voicemail that she left for one of the mothers, she can be heard saying, "F**** you, you stupid b****. F**** you with your white privilege, not caring about the well-being of others, f*** you," Daily Mail reported.
Norma Garcia-Lopez's resignation
According to Fox News, Garcia-Lopez's resignation mail read: "I am writing to inform [Fort Worth Independent School District] that it has become necessary for me to resign from my volunteer positions with the District, including as member and co-chair of the Racial Equity Committee and as a member of the Redistricting Committee. Every student in FWISD deserves equity and respect. That is my passion and reason for serving on those committees." Garcia-Lopez continued, "I cannot allow the vile and relentless attacks on me by white supremacists to distract from or overshadow the continued pursuit of equity in FWISD. That work is too vital. Please notify the appropriate FWISD staff and committee members of my resignation."
Before announcing her resignation, Garcia-Lopez defended her decision after she was accused of "doxxing" the parents who had filed a lawsuit against the school district and said in a statement to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: "Some people consider my actions doxxing. It's not doxxing when you expose someone who filed a public motion in a public court of law that impacts public school children."
Why was Garcia-Lopez accused of doxxing?
Garcia-Lopez has also deleted her Twitter account after posting the following message: "It's astounding what the 'White Privilege' power from Tanglewood has vs a whole diverse community that cares for the well-being of others. These are their names: Jennifer Treger, Todd Daniel, Kerri Rehmeyer and a coward Jane Doe. Internet do your thang." Garcia-Lopez also revealed the contact information and addresses of the four families, along with Rehmeyer's employer and work email address, in a Facebook post. Under the same post, she later commented that the parents "definitely need to be called out."
She also defended her move to leave the foul voicemail on Kerri Rehmeyer's phone, using a blocked number. Garcia-Lopez said of the abusive voicemail she left for Rehmeyer: "My message contained harsh language — no threats. Some people find my choice of words in that message offensive. But what's really offensive is that four white parents could hold so much power."
Speaking about Garcia-Lopez's resignation, Rehmeyer told Fox News: "Ultimately, we are relieved to hear that Norma Garcia-Lopez will no longer hold positions of influence in Fort Worth ISD, but we are disappointed by the complete lack of action by the Board of Trustees." She added that she believes the school board will "continue to ignore our concerns," adding that the board "haven't bothered to notify us she resigned."