In an unexpected turn of events, the Department of Justice (DOJ) of the Biden administration has positioned itself in the middle of a divisive controversy in Virginia, where Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin’s planned transgender regulations are igniting passionate disputes. Ahead of a crucial vote that will decide the fate of these policies, the DOJ’s Community Relations Service (CRS) has taken an unusual step by emailing members of the local school board to offer the federal government’s “conflict resolution services.”
These emails, which were acquired by The Daily Wire, show that the CRS is fully “attuned to ongoing community tensions in Roanoke arising from the introduction of new model policies for transgender students.” The agency’s “conciliation specialist” has taken the initiative to let the board members know that the CRS focuses on “averting and addressing community tensions and hate crimes.” The group’s goal is to offer “support and services as you navigate conflict within the community” in relation to the divisive transgender legislation.
Following a recent incident in which two activists were detained while attending a Roanoke County school board meeting where these same plans were being debated, the DOJ has now intervened. The arrests were made as a result of the activists’ disruptive behavior as they constantly screamed the phrase “protect trans lives,” but it’s important to note that no incidents of “hate crimes” were officially registered in Roanoke. It is crucial to understand that Youngkin’s July 18 principles, which were formalized, oppose schools helping a child transition to a new gender without having specific parental approval.
Critics claim that the Biden administration doesn’t seem to have learned from its mistakes in the past. There is still controversy surrounding their strategy due to the event in October 2021 where Attorney General Merrick Garland authorized federal law enforcement to observe parents at Virginia school board meetings. This action generated a lot of criticism since it would paint worried parents as possible “domestic terrorists.”
Youngkin’s spokeswoman Macauley Porter stated, “The Biden DOJ has demonstrated a stark lack of judgment by failing to internalize lessons from prior overreach.” Porter argues that Youngkin’s creative attempts to ensure that parents keep a crucial part in discussions on their child’s identity inside the school setting are undermined by the DOJ’s present engagement.
The DOJ’s plans to send mediators to the Virginia county that Youngkin won by a big majority in his 2021 election are still up in the air, and it’s unclear what the repercussions of this intervention will be. Government mediators can be introduced into a community through a variety of stakeholders or even by unsolicited initiatives, according to Amy Condra, a CRS spokesperson who uses her preferred pronouns in her email.
Condra stayed silent on the impetus for CRS’s engagement in Roanoke, as well as whether or not any illegal activity or hate crimes were recorded.
The DOJ claims that its CRS mediators maintain an objective attitude and are exclusively concerned with enabling an impartial and fair procedure designed to promote settlements between the parties in question. However, the CRS’s alleged partiality in transgender issues is under close examination. This is demonstrated by their training curricula designed for law enforcement personnel, which especially cover establishing connections with transgender populations and tackling pressing problems. The DOJ’s Civil Rights Division and the CRS collaborated in an eye-catching way to recognize the “Transgender Day of Visibility.” The CRS website prominently displays a fact sheet outlining “New Actions to Safeguard LGBTQI+ Communities.”
In an interesting move, Hannah Levine, the CRS mediation expert, gave her preferred pronouns to the Roanoke school board members in her email. Levine chose not to reply to questions requesting more information, though.
Despite attempts by the Trump administration to reduce funding for the DOJ’s CRS program through budgetary measures, this effort eventually failed.