MERIDIAN, Idaho — A West Ada School District teacher was recently told to remove a sign from her classroom reading "everyone is welcome here," due to conflicting with district and state regulations. In response, students at Renaissance High School have planned a walk-out for Thursday afternoon.
Sarah Inama, a 6th-grade teacher at Lewis and Clark Middle School, has recently spoken out about her experience being directed to remove signs from her classroom that supposedly express a personal opinion.
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Inama, in an email from the district, was told that her poster "conflicts with the intention of Policy and Section 33-138, Idaho Code, Dignity and Nondiscrimination in Public Education Act," and was instructed to "immediately remove" it.
Broadcast Transcription
West Ada high school students walked out of class Thursday to show support for Lewis and Clark Middle School Teacher Sarah Inama, after the district asked her to take down a poster that said ‘Everyone is Welcome Here.’
"Support our teachers!" high school students chanted at the district's office.
"I entered that classroom and I felt welcome. I think everybody [here] deserved to also feel welcomed," said Aunikah, a Renaissance High School Sophomore.
Several students, even ones like Aunikah, who was in Sarah Inama's class in middle school, shared heartfelt stories about how teachers have positively impacted their lives.
Vivian, a junior at Renaissance High School, sharing with the crowd how inclusive signs like this one have made her feel welcome as an Asian-American student
"When we are able to make our education more diverse… we make people feel more welcome… I am very glad to be here in protest of censorship. I will always be fighting for the side of diversity and the side of inclusivity.’
Inama, a 6th grade World Civilization teacher at lewis and clark middle school was told to take down *these two signs… District leadership stated that this "...ensures that classrooms remain neutral, distraction-free spaces where students can focus on their academic success."
"I had a student tell me, she pointed to my signs and said, you know, 'that might not be true in other places, but in this classroom, that's a fact'," said Inama.
Sarah Inama tells me she took the posters down last week… but felt compelled to put them back up.
"I thought about it and had lost sleep over it, and had decided that I don't agree with why they were asking me to take it down and so I put it back up,"
The West Ada School District also says, "... this situation is not about limiting speech or expression but about ensuring consistency.”
Students demonstrating at district headquarters say they're using their voices because they know it's risky for teachers to speak up…
students directed chants at the district .. to "Do your job".. "Support our teachers".. and echoed the sentiment .. "Everyone is Welcome"
"I know that they think that and feel like that they’re supporting me and like helping stand up for me, but really what I think they’re doing is stand up for each other" said Inama.
The Wassmuth Center for Human Rights in Boise expressing their support on social media for the message that "Everyone is Welcome" in a classroom. They hope this viral event will promote change in the district's poster guidelines.
"This one particular message of 'Everyone is Welcome,' is something I hope that they would reconsider. For kids to learn and to thrive and to be doing their best as students and people, that is a pretty key message." said Christina Bruce-Bennion – Executive Director for Wassmuth Center for Human Rights.
As for Mrs. Inama, the district told her to find an alternative sign by the end of the year.
