I am outraged that Bellevue school officials made the decision to not show the president’s speech because, as it was stated on a news station, a large contributor said they would pull their contributions if the speech was shown.

How dare our public schools, paid for with our taxes, be held hostage by some obviously wealthy local Republican to question the President of the United States and think that they know better. Who do they think they are, powerful, wealthy and in control of Bellevue? And to think that the schools buckled to this threat.

I would like the school district to publish this individual’s name and all that were involved with this decision to be published on the district’s website so we can all clearly understand who was involved. The school board is an elected position and their actions on this matter should be made clear to the citizens of Bellevue. We deserve to know the truth about this action allowing us to make our own decisions about who is running our schools and who will continue to be in charge.

To say that “we felt the need to exercise caution in order to address all voices. Our intent has never been to censor our president’s speech but ensure that it be used as an instructional tool imbedded in our curriculum” is unbelievable. The election is over, what country do you live in? To think that you did not trust what the President of the United States was going to say and decided to edit it on your own, in my view calls for the dismissal of those involved.

Becky LaMonte, Bellevue school parent and resident