Free Republic

If you recall, back in May, William Baer was arrested after voicing opposition to a school board meeting about a controversial book by Jodi Picoult titled Nineteen Minutes, a story about a school shooting that contained pornographic content. It was also required reading for ninth graders. Now a New Hampshire 4th Circuit Court of Appeals judge has blasted the school board for "silencing" him and arresting him, which was a violation of Mr. Baer's free speech.

Parents in Gilford New Hampshire went to a school board meeting to get answers as to why they were not notified that their children would be reading the book "Nineteen Minutes" which details, among other things, a violent sexual encounter between teenagers. On a day when we also hear that a California school district was trying to move forward with a "lesson plan that instructed middle school students to make arguments denying the Holocaust happened," isn't this the type of parental involvement we should be encouraging? I can understand if he was being abusive or if he kept the meeting...

A reading assignment has some parents in New Hampshire confused and upset. The controversial book “Nineteen Minutes” by Jodi Picoult is required reading for some 9th grade students at Gilford High School. The book is a fictional story about a school shooting and has been part of the curriculum since 2007. School officials say that the book contains important themes, but parents say that message is overshadowed by what some call pornographic content on one page. The book was assigned to students last Monday, but the school failed to give parents of freshmen students notice of the sexually explicit content...

Raw video: Man arrested at Gilford school board meeting Published on May 5, 2014 William Baer, a parent upset over a reading selection in Gilford, was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct when police said he did not leave a school board meeting after being asked

GILFORD, N.H. – The New Hampshire father who was disgusted with school officials for assigning a sexually explicit novel to his 14-year-old daughter was arrested at Monday night’s school board meeting and charged with disorderly conduct. Unionleader.com reports William Baer was arrested and taken away in handcuffs from the meeting “because he would not stop protesting” the district’s policy of assigning “Nineteen Minutes” by Jodi Picoult to its 9th grade English students. In a previous interview with EAGnews, Baer described portions of the novel as “pornography” and said he was appalled that Gilford High School officials assigned the book without...