High-ranking military official called to resign after targeting mom upset over pansexuality posters at school
Angela Reading says she was 'surprised' and 'scared' at the military official's response
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Facebook post from a New Jersey mom complaining about sexual preference posters at her child's elementary school prompted a shocking response from the U.S. military.
A high-ranking U.S. military official was called on to resign Wednesday after he responded to a Facebook post by Angela Reading, a mother and member of the Northern Burlington Board of Education, flagging her to local police for exhibiting what he described as "safety concerns."
Lt. Col. Christopher Schilling apparently took issue with Reading's post alerting parents in a local Facebook group of posters hanging at the entrance of her 7-year-old's school displaying different kinds of sexuality, including the virtues of being "polysexual."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The posters were reportedly part of an assignment to create a "safe space" for all students to "feel good and accepted." Kids as young as 9 years old allegedly participated in creating these posters, as detailed on "Chaos and Control's" Substack page, which first reported on the story.
Close up on a key and padlock lying on a red binary code surface. The padlock is unlocked and displays a glowing grid. (FILE)
Reading slammed the elementary school's hallway display as "perverse," arguing "it should be illegal to expose my kids to sexual content" and provided parents with pictures of the LGBTQ-themed poster walls.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The last thing she expected was a response from a high-ranking military officer.
"I was more than surprised. I was scared," Reading said in an interview on "Tucker Carlson Tonight" Wednesday. "I actually pulled my kids from school the day I found out. It was mind-boggling and I was worried for them when the U.S. military comes after you for simply raising concern about a public poster that is widely available for all to see."
On his personal Facebook page, according to a screenshot, Schilling claimed there were "security concerns" with Reading's post, adding that the Joint Base is working with local law enforcement to "monitor the situation" and "ensure the continued safety of the entire community."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Joint Base confirmed to Fox News that they notified law enforcement about the social media exchange. (U.S. Army)
"The current situation involving Ms. Reading's actions has caused safety concerns for many families," he wrote. "The Joint Base leadership takes this situation very seriously and from the beginning have had the Security Forces working with multiple state and local law enforcement agencies to monitor the situation to ensure the continued safety of the entire community."
Reading, however, said her post was "really moderate."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"It essentially said I didn’t think my 7-year-old was age-appropriate to be exposed to words such as polysexual and pansexual," Reading told Carlson. "I said that all people are deserving of love and respect. My post was very explicit about that. Still, it prompted this response and it’s really scary that in this country we can’t have a right to speak and raise concerns about our public education system."
Reading added that while she is outraged at the response to her post, she considers Schilling a "bad-faith actor" who does not represent all members of the U.S. military, noting that North Hanover is home to many "phenomenal" military families and teachers.
Still, Reading said the military entanglement and police pressure left her scared to speak out.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The administrator of the Facebook group told her that North Hanover Police Chief Robert Duff reached out urging her to remove it, Reading said.
"I said, ‘I don’t want Homeland Security coming after me. Take the post down. I don’t want to be dealing with this.’ I agreed that the post should come down," she said, adding that she later contacted the police chief "and reminded him of the First Amendment."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"We shouldn’t be utilizing government resources and our positions to pressure individuals to take down Facebook posts," she said. "I also shared with him the post that he'd already seen. There was nothing wrong. It didn’t violate any law, it didn't violate any Facebook rule whatsoever."
Reading said military personnel ‘deserve the utmost love admiration and respect.' (Maxwell Air Force Base)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The Joint Base confirmed to Fox News that it notified law enforcement about the social media exchange, "which is common information-sharing practice among law enforcement entities."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The purpose of the military is to defend us against foreign enemies, not to police Facebook posts," Carlson said.
He added that he hopes Schilling is "removed from his command tonight." As for the police chief, Carlson said, "I hope Chief Duff is relieved of his post immediately too."