You will either; "be respectful" or be arrested; your choice.

The Secretary of the APS School Board Kathy Korte, is in charge
of the public forum at school board
meetings. She reads a caveat to
speakers before they are allowed
to speak at the forum.

One of the things she, and they
expect is for speakers to be
"respectful".

If in her/their opinion, a person is
being "disrespectful", bad things
will befall them; beginning with the
forfeiture of the remainder of their
time, and ending with the real possibility of being arrested and removed by the APS Police Department.

She doesn't mention the arrest part, but they have done it
before, more than a dozen times, and there is no reason to
believe they wouldn't do it again - if provoked.

I have "provoked" them on countless occasions and they have
"arrested" me on more than a dozen. They might argue that
I was being disrespectful; I would argue that I was speaking
truth to power and, they just can't handle the truth.

When asked to surrender any public record/evidence they
have of behavior that actually warranted any if these (illegal)
arrests; they had to admit they hadn't even one.

Speaking truth to power is by its very nature disrespectful.
For the school board to make a rule that you may not speak
at a public forum if you insist upon speaking truth to power;
is nonsense on its face.

The right to speak freely and the right to petition one's
government are constitutionally protected human rights.
You don't forfeit those rights because a politician or public
servant thinks your speech or manner is "disrespectful".

School Board Member Marty Esquivel and School Board
President Paula Maes don't get to arrest people, they don't
get to write illegal restraining orders, just because they think
a citizen is being "disrespectful". It is an abuse of power;
our power.




photo APS website