Washington, D.C., October 5, 2026 – National Parents Union President Keri Rodrigues issued a statement following a joint letter from the Department of Education and the Department of Justice on parental rights, which stated that ‘parents are not terrorists’ for engaging with their school boards:
“Let me be crystal clear: parents have every right to speak up, show up angry, and demand answers from their schools. They do not have the right to threaten, harass, or intimidate people. And if someone threatens to kill an elected official, that should be investigated. Full stop.
In 2022, five U.S. Senators and 18 members of Congress accused the National Parents Union of defending threats against school board members. That’s nonsense. We weren’t defending threats. We were defending a basic standard of decency: violence and death threats are unacceptable, no matter who makes them or what side they’re on.
As the mother of five sons, I can’t believe this is even a debate. Free speech is a constitutional right. Threatening someone’s life is not. Our kids are watching us. If we want them to solve problems through dialogue instead of intimidation, adults need to start acting like adults.
Dress today’s announcement up any way you want. The part parents should hold Washington to is transparency. Families deserve clear, honest communication from their schools, and the people elected to govern those schools deserve to do their jobs without looking over their shoulder. That’s not a partisan position. That’s common sense. And I won’t let anyone rewrite the history of what we stood for.”
About the National Parents Union
We are a nationwide network of grassroots advocates and dedicated parent groups fighting relentlessly for our children and families. Today, the National Parents Union unites over 1.7 million families across more than 1,800 affiliated organizations spanning every single state, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.