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“School Board Safety,� , followed by this: “Threats of violence against school board members, officials and workers in our nation’s public schools can be reported by the public to the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center (NTOC) via its national tip line (1-800-CALL-FBI) and online through the FBI website.�

That school district officials thought such a notice necessary is a sad commentary on the political division of our times. But the previous superintendent resigned after a difficult year dealing with the coronavirus pandemic that included the sorts of threats from angry parents that caused him to need security protection. Other school district personnel also resigned, with increasingly harassing rhetoric coming their way from residents of the west St. Louis County school district who are fed misinformation on Facebook and other platforms about masks, vaccines, critical race theory and other topics.

The notice itself, of course, which followed sent to school boards and law enforcement from U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, led to divisive discussion at the most recent Rockwood School Board meeting. I wasn’t there but followed a Twitter thread posted by the student journalists at Lafayette High School, where two of my children are students.

I went back and watched the meeting on the district’s after the student journalists noted that School Board President Jaime Bayes had to cut off the public comment period during the meeting and call for a recess to settle down shouting from the crowd.

“Do we need to ask several people to leave this meeting right now?� Bayes calmly asked as one group of parents was shouting down another parent, who was offering comments critical of the group of parents and other citizens who hang out on the private Facebook group “Concerned Parents of Rockwood.�

“I’m saddened tonight by a lot of the tone and conversation. ... I’m just disappointed,� Bayes said. “We are not shouting out.�

But the shouting continued, back and forth among the parents, until Bayes briefly stopped the meeting.

What a sad state of affairs. For about an hour, there were comments from parents mostly critical of Garland’s letter, even though they mentioned things in it that simply aren’t there, fed to them by the Republican propaganda machine, which is pushing the straw-man argument that Garland is trying to tamp down dissent.

At the board meeting, there were comments critical of critical race theory, which isn’t taught in Rockwood schools. There were comments seeking some books to be banned from the library and, of course, breathless criticism of the mask mandate that was in place at the board meeting and continues in all the public schools. (Note to St. Louis County Council Chairman Rita Heard Days: The school board president announced at the onset of the meeting that masks were required. Most people appeared to comply with her request.)

Much of what was said at the meeting was disinformation, such as the criticism of Garland’s letter, which clearly only asks the Justice Department to coordinate with local law enforcement departments to develop strategies to combat harassment and threats of violence against school board members.

“Seriously, the FBI, really?� one parent sarcastically asked. “You have poked the wrong bears.�

One of the bears asked the school board members who pays them.

“Who are you accountable to?� she asked. “FDA, CDC, NEA, Chinese Communist Party, the globalists ... ?�

And so it went for about an hour before the board moved on to the normal, mundane business of running a school district. The board members showed tremendous patience sitting there listening to criticisms, most of which were based on falsehoods.

There was no violence at the meeting. But as the dialogue broke down and the finger-pointing and shouting began, it’s not hard to see how quickly words could turn to action and how those board members and school officials facing the bulk of the verbal volleys might fear what could happen next.

The bear has been poked, and he is angry. He’s being fed by the same politicians — such as Republican U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley — who encouraged the insurrectionists outside the U.S. Capitol with a fist raised in defiance.

On Jan. 6, words turned to violence in no time at all. It’s no wonder there is an FBI tip line posted on the school district’s website. I hope it never has to be used.